Florida Personal Injury FAQs

Catania & Catania Injury Lawyers handles personal injury cases on a contingency fee basis, meaning you pay nothing upfront and owe no attorney’s fee unless we recover compensation for you. During your free consultation, we’ll explain how case costs and litigation expenses are handled.

Insurance adjusters are trained to settle claims quickly and for as little as possible, often before an injured person understands the full extent of their injuries. Having a lawyer review your claim before you sign anything or give a recorded statement helps ensure you don’t accidentally undermine your case or accept less than it’s worth.

It’s risky to negotiate directly with the other side’s insurer, since their goal is to minimize what they pay, not to make sure you’re fully compensated. Once you accept a settlement, you typically can’t go back for more later, even if your medical costs turn out higher than expected. For these reasons, it’s worth having an attorney evaluate any offer before you accept it.

Catania & Catania prepares every case as though it may go to trial, and our attorneys have courtroom experience when a fair settlement isn’t offered. While most personal injury cases do resolve through negotiation, insurance companies respond differently to firms that are genuinely prepared to take a case in front of a jury.

Look for a firm with experience handling cases similar to yours, a track record of results, and attorneys who will communicate with you and remain available for questions throughout your case. A free consultation is a good opportunity to ask directly about the attorney’s experience and how they plan to approach your case.

Call 911, seek medical attention even if you feel fine, and get a copy of the police report once available. Photograph the vehicles, the scene, and your injuries, and avoid discussing fault with the other driver or their insurer before speaking with an attorney.

Yes. Florida requires drivers to carry personal injury protection (PIP) coverage, which pays a portion of your medical bills and lost wages regardless of who caused the accident, up to your policy limits. If your injuries are serious enough to exceed Florida’s threshold for a lawsuit, you may still be able to pursue a claim against the at-fault driver beyond what PIP covers.

Your own PIP coverage generally pays first, up to your policy limits, regardless of fault. If your injuries are severe enough to meet Florida’s legal threshold, you may be able to pursue additional compensation from the at-fault driver’s bodily injury liability coverage.

If you carry uninsured/underinsured motorist (UM/UIM) coverage, you may be able to recover compensation through your own policy when the at-fault driver has no insurance or not enough to cover your damages. Florida doesn’t require drivers to carry UM/UIM coverage, so it’s worth checking your own policy or having an attorney review it for you.

Even accidents that seem minor can involve injuries that don’t show symptoms right away, like whiplash or soft tissue damage, and insurers often lowball claims where the property damage looks small. A quick consultation can help you understand whether your situation is worth pursuing further.

Truck accident cases can involve federal trucking regulations, driver logs, and a trucking company’s hiring and maintenance records, in addition to the usual accident evidence. Because 18-wheelers cause more severe injuries and the insurance policies involved are often much larger, trucking companies and their insurers tend to fight harder to limit what they pay.

Liability isn’t limited to the truck driver. Depending on the cause, the trucking company, a cargo loading company, or a maintenance contractor may share responsibility. Identifying every liable party is one of the first steps in building a strong truck accident claim.

Truck accident cases often take longer than standard car accident claims because they involve more extensive investigation: gathering electronic logging data, maintenance records, and, if needed, expert analysis. Simpler cases may resolve in a matter of months, while more complex or disputed cases can take considerably longer.

Property owners and businesses are generally responsible for maintaining reasonably safe conditions and can be held liable if they knew or should have known about a hazard, such as a wet floor or a broken step, and failed to fix it or warn visitors. Proving the property owner had actual or constructive knowledge of the hazard is often the central issue in these cases.

Slip and fall cases can be challenging because you generally have to prove the property owner knew, or reasonably should have known, about the dangerous condition before your accident. Strong evidence, such as photos of the hazard, incident reports, and witness statements, makes a significant difference in these cases.

Most Florida employers with four or more employees are required to carry workers’ compensation insurance, so if yours doesn’t, it’s worth having a workers’ compensation attorney review your situation. You may have other legal options depending on your employer’s size and industry. Certain industries and business structures have different requirements under Florida law.

In most cases, workers’ compensation is the only remedy against your employer, meaning you generally can’t sue them directly for a workplace injury. However, if a third party, such as a contractor, equipment manufacturer, or another company on the worksite, contributed to your injury, you may be able to pursue a separate personal injury claim against that party in addition to your workers’ comp benefits.

You have the right to appeal a denied claim, and the process typically involves filing a petition for benefits. An attorney can help identify why the claim was denied and build the strongest possible case for appeal, since insurers sometimes deny claims that should have been approved.

A wrongful death claim allows certain surviving family members to seek compensation when a loved one dies because of another party’s negligence or wrongful act, under the Florida Wrongful Death Act (Florida Statutes § 768.16–26). This applies to deaths caused by car accidents, truck accidents, defective products, and many other situations.

Florida law generally gives you two years from the date of death to file a wrongful death lawsuit (Florida Statutes § 95.11). Because these cases require identifying every liable party and gathering evidence, it’s important to speak with an attorney as soon as you’re able to.

A wrongful death claim compensates surviving family members for their own losses, like loss of companionship and support. A survival action allows the deceased person’s estate to continue a personal injury claim the person had before they died. In Florida, when the injury itself causes the death, the personal injury claim generally does not survive and is replaced by the wrongful death claim. When it’s unclear whether the injury caused the death, both claims may be brought as alternatives.

There’s no set number. Value depends on factors such as the severity of your injuries, medical costs, lost income, and the clarity with which liability can be established. Every case is different, and results depend on the specific facts and injuries involved. An attorney can give you a realistic sense of your claim’s value after reviewing your medical records and the facts of your case.

It depends on the complexity of the case and the severity of the injuries involved. Straightforward claims with clear liability may resolve in a few months, while cases involving serious injuries, disputed fault, or an insurer unwilling to offer fair value can take considerably longer, especially if a lawsuit becomes necessary.

Since its founding in 1992, Catania & Catania Injury Lawyers has recovered more than $1 billion in settlements and verdicts for injured clients across the Tampa Bay area. Every case is different, and results depend on the specific facts and injuries involved, but our Tampa personal injury attorneys bring more than 120 years of combined experience to every case.