Miami Personal Injury Attorney Blog

Walking Can Be Bad for Your Health in Florida

February 28, 2019 | Wolfson & Leon

hitandrunax Going out for a walk may seem like a great idea. However, ironically, going out for a walk in Florida may actually lead to a serious injury or death.

Smart Growth America, a non-profit organization founded in 2000, found in a recent study that over the past decade, over 49,000 people in the United States were stuck and killed by drivers while walking on streets. Put another way, that is the equivalent of approximately 13 people per day.

The number of pedestrian fatalities has increased almost every year since 1990. In the past decade alone, there was a dramatic 35.7 percent increase in the number of pedestrian fatalities, with 2016 and 2017 being the deadliest since 1990.

What’s the Difference Between Comprehensive and Collision Insurance in Florida?

January 28, 2019 | Wolfson & Leon

Ramp When people think of auto insurance, they probably think of the comprehensive and collision insurance. But, most do not actually full understand the terms. So, what is the difference?

Comprehensive and collision insurance are two of the most common types of auto insurance that are offered to repair damaged vehicles. The two insurances, however, act very differently as they cover different types of damage.

Comprehensive car insurance is meant for damages which are caused by non-collision-related damages. So, anything that deals with inclement weather or theft or vandalism. Collision insurance, on the other hand, is meant for damages just caused by collisions. In both types of insurance, the coverage may include individual repairs or a full replacement of your vehicle.

Top 5 Factors that Raise Your Florida Car Insurance Rates

January 28, 2019 | Wolfson & Leon

Flat-Iron-Miami Shopping for car insurance is certainly not something that people look forward to. But, it is important for people to know exactly what goes into the calculation of insurance rates.

To many, insurance policies can be a confusing jumble of technical words and differing prices that do not make any sense. There is, however, an actual logic to the process. Companies use complex algorithms based on personal factors to determine how likely it is that you will have an accident. The idea behind all of the factors is that the higher risk, the higher the rates.

Most people know that your insurance rate is highly affected by the amount of coverage a person chooses and the amount of deductibles a person chooses. In general, a person can reduce their rates by choosing lower amounts of coverage or by raising their deductibles.

Florida’s Fight Against Uninsured Motorists

January 28, 2019 | Wolfson & Leon

Miami-Rooftop Florida may soon make some dramatic changes to the realm of auto insurance.

Auto insurance is not exactly an exciting topic of conversation, but several states around the U.S. have recognized that a significant portion of drivers are uninsured, putting drivers who are insured at high risk. A few states’ legislators have started considering investing considerable money in programs to help local governments combat this increasingly serious issue.

Just how bad is the problem? According to a 2018 study by the Insurance Research Council, an industry-funded not-for-profit research organization, which was co-sponsored by The Hanover Insurance Group, almost thirteen percent of all U.S. motorists were uninsured in 2015. Put another way, almost one in eight drivers are uninsured. The 2015 rate was an increase from the 2010 rate which was just above twelve percent.

Diverging Diamond Interchange Accidents in Miami

August 15, 2018 | Wolfson & Leon

In August 2018, Miami drivers were introduced to Diverging Diamond Interchanges. It began on NW 27^th Avenue and State Road 836 (Dolphin Expressway). The second area for implementation is NW 57^th Avenue and the Dolphin Expressway (SR 836) which will come in the next few months. At the present time, DDI’s are also planned for five locations in Broward County. All of the Broward Diverging Diamond Interchanges will be installed at the intersections of the Sawgrass Expressway and:

Sunrise Boulevard
Oakland Park Boulevard

More Car Accidents and Fewer Tickets in Florida – Who Would Have Guessed?

August 1, 2018 | Wolfson & Leon

In South Florida, the number of crashes in Florida increased by more than 33,000 from 2012 to 2017. Yet in that same period in Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach counties law enforcement officials issued 500,000 fewer tickets. If you received a ticket recently, then this means little to you. If you were in a crash, then it makes you wonder. If the person who hit me had received a ticket before, would they have been more careful? Maybe that driver who injured you shouldn’t have been on the road at all? Eventually you will want to know why have the number of citations issued gone down while traffic accidents have increased in South Florida? South Florida personal injury attorneys know that the answers from authorities are vague but hardly conclusive.

Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles Statistics

A statistical study from 2012 to 2017 reveals:

How Could Instacart Not Be Insured?

July 23, 2018 | Wolfson & Leon

You might be surprised by this but Instacart doesn’t provide commercial automobile insurance coverage for its drivers. As a result, most Instacart drivers will not be insured. The Instacart driver may have their own car insurance, but unless they disclosed to the insurer that they were using that vehicle for commercial purposes then the personal car insurer is likely to deny coverage.

The only remaining option is for the Instacart driver to purchase and pay for their own commercial policy of insurance – and that is extremely unlikely as it is not required by law and the cost of a commercial policy is prohibitive. After all, we are talking about hard-working people trying to hustle and make a few bucks by shopping and delivering food for people.

Instacart in Florida

Florida Hate Crime Laws

April 9, 2018 | Wolfson & Leon

b5O_bNt_400x400 The Miami Beach Gay Pride mission statement is aimed towards bringing together the people of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender community, as well as their allies, supporters, and friends to celebrate the incredible culture and spirit of the LGBTQ community. The event is celebrating its tenth anniversary this year and organizers expect even more than the estimated 135,000 attendees of 2017. While much of the focus remains on enjoying the event, it is also important to remain vigilant against all forms of hate crimes. We, as a community, must always remember that no one counts unless everyone counts.

At Wolfson & Leon, our hate crime injury lawyers in Miami have helped victims who were seriously hurt since 1963. Our service to the community has always included those who were injured or worse due to hate crimes. All too often, crime victims who suffer injuries or families who lose a loved one to a criminal act feel that there is no possible way to get any measure of justice. But in some cases, knowledge of the law and how to conduct a thorough investigation will shine the light on a potentially responsible individual or company who was not apparent at the time of the crime.

If you need additional information on hate crimes and the organizations that exist to help, we would suggest you consider the following:

Florida’s Crime Clock

April 9, 2018 | Wolfson & Leon

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In Florida, extensive statistics are kept by law enforcement. In theory, those statistics are used to measure performance, effectiveness and for the deployment of resources. In addition, crime statistics can be informative for political purposes. But it is always a good idea to look at any statistical analysis with a cautious eye. One must always consider what is being measured and, especially, what is not being measured. With that in mind, we look at Florida’s Crime Clock as promulgated by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement.

In the most recent version of the Crime Clock, the year 2016 is examined. Again, with a grain of salt, the results are interesting and informative. Crime clearly remains a serious problem here in Florida. Here are some of the results:

There is an aggravated assault committed every 9 minutes in Florida

Marsy’s Law – Florida Crime Victims’ Rights

February 12, 2018 | Wolfson & Leon

proof3-300x200 Being a crime victim or someone close to a deceased crime victim is a difficult and life – changing experience. The world doesn’t look the same anymore. Suffering attack on your life, personal freedom, sexual freedom, safety, property, or anything else, means that the trust in others you once had is now shaken, or completely lost. After the unfortunate event, crime victims are in a very specific mental and emotional state: at the same time, they eagerly seek for justice, and criminal procedures are overwhelming for them. While they do their best to help the investigation, it is struggling to relive the criminal event repeatedly.

Overall, the United States provides a crime victim a significant position in the criminal procedure by entitling them to many rights. Each state can widen the scope of these rights further, and they often do that. Crime victims cooperate with investigation by giving valuable information to authorities, and later testify in court, but they also have the right to be informed, to be present, and to be heard when relevant, at all crucial stages of criminal proceedings, so long as exercising their rights doesn’t interfere with the rights of the accused.

It might look as if victims are in a very comfortable position in criminal proceedings, but the big picture is different. If you take a closer look at the laws, you’ll notice that in the US Constitution and every single state constitution have enumerated rights for accused and convicted individuals. Entitling them to these rights is in the spirit of modern civilization and democratic values, as it provides for fair procedure and shouldn’t allow anyone to be convicted in unfair trials. Whereas, the US Constitution and fifteen state constitutions haven’t enumerated crime victim rights yet. While accused persons have more than twenty rights listed in the US Constitution, crime victims have none yet.