Houston Drowning Accident Lawyer

Home » Houston Drowning Accident Attorney

Drowning Accident Attorneys in Houston
Fighting For Justice for Your Family

Call

our Houston drowning accident attorneys

and discuss your case with Houston’s leading drowning accident lawyer.

There are many hazards that can lead to drowning or near-drowning in our Houston communities, but not all cases warrant a wrongful death or personal injury case.

When someone’s negligence contributes to a drowning accident, there are legal actions surviving family members can take to help them recover compensation for the economic and noneconomic losses they suffer.

Our Texas drowning accident lawyers have been helping families after drowning for over three decades- call us at (281) 587-1111!

How Can

We Help You?

Common Causes of Drowning Deaths and Who May Be Liable

A small child can drown in very shallow water, and drowning accidents can happen in many places, including water parks, hotels, apartment complexes, lakes, and water drainage ditches. Pool drains are well-known causes of drowning accidents, like hair, clothing or a part of a person’s body becomes stuck.

Legally, any party whose negligence led to or contributed to the accident can be held responsible. Landlords, public pool administrators, drain manufacturers, and private individuals are just a few possible defendants in a drowning-related wrongful death or personal injury case. Hiring a drowning accident attorney is the first step in protecting your rights.

Boating accidents often lead to tragedy. Many people drown after a collision with another boat or another object.

Some Drowning Cases We Have Handled

Model Home Drowning Case

A young boy was at a model home while the adults were being shown the home. He could get out of the model home, into the backyard, and drown in the pool. The commercial model home had no safety or drowning prevention items or child safety items. After a lawsuit was filed just before trial, the defendants settled the wrongful death lawsuit for a huge amount.

Apartment Complex Drowning

A boy was trapped in a drain that did not comply with the law. The boy was unconscious but was able to be saved and recovered fully. After a lawsuit was filed, the failure to comply with the required safety precautions forced the defendants to settle for a sizable amount. Our punitive damage lawyers claimed exemplary damages in the case.

Texas Laws About Drowning Prevention

The Virginia Graeme Baker Pool & Spa Safety Act

The Virginia Graeme Baker Pool and Spa Safety Act may be relevant in cases against public facilities or pool drain manufacturers. It is named after a 7-year-old girl stuck in a tub due to suction from the drain. Unfortunately, the girl drowned, and her family advocated for better pool safety standards.

The Act outlaws drain that were not ASME/ANSI A112.19.8-2007 certified, required public pools and spas to be fitted with parts to prevent entrapment, and gave grants to states that passed similar legislation.

If a public pool used an outlawed drain or failed to take adequate steps to prevent entrapment, it may be responsible under this Act that drowning death was related to entrapment due to a drain.

Further, drains that do not meet the standards established in the Act may leave manufacturers liable.

Taking Legal Action after a Drowning Accident

In wrongful death or personal injury cases, the plaintiff must prove the following:

The defendant owed the injured or deceased party a duty of care (if injured while trespassing, it can complicate matters, though the attractive nuisance laws may apply if a child was involved and the property owner did not take adequate measures to secure the hazard, e.g., a pool);

Find a Duty by the Defendant

The defendant breached that duty by failing to provide reasonable care to prevent harm to others;
The defendant’s negligent actions led or contributed to the accident and resultant drowning or near-drowning, and the plaintiff has suffered damages.

Damages

Compensatory damages include economic damages, like medical or funeral expenses, and non-economic damages, like pain and suffering or disability, for a brain injury after a near-drowning.

If wrongful death is caused by a “willful act or omission or gross negligence” by the defendant, punitive damages can also be sought (Tex. Civ. Code Title 4 Sec. 71.009).

Different entities have different standards that qualify as negligence. For example, manufacturers may fall under strict product liability. Suppose a manufacturing, design, or disclosure defect exists in any of their products. In that case, they can be held responsible for the harm that comes from those products, even if they showed reasonable care in making the product.

Most Drowning Cases involve Children.

More than 50 percent of all drowning incidents involving young children and infants occur in a swimming pool. Many of the accidents count have been prevented with either proper supervision of the child or proper protection and maintenance of the pool area.

Here is an article about what you should do after a swimming pool drowning.

Swimming Pool Accident Statistics

*An average of 300 children aged five and under drown each year in pools across the country
*An average of 2000 children aged five and under are treated for submersion injuries each year in the United States
*The cost of treating these victims can range from a few thousand dollars (for initial admission to a hospital) to * hundreds of thousands of dollars, depending on the severity of the injury.

Children submerged for more extended periods and then revived will likely suffer more severe and sustained brain damage. There have been incidences where a child’s hospital stay can extend over four months and cost a quarter of a million dollars!

Money is a secondary concern for the safety and well-being of a child. That is why most communities have relatively strict regulations regarding the proper enclosure of a pool to ensure it is inaccessible to the ‘wayward’ child. The number of drowning victims increases substantially in the summer in Houston.

Contact An Experienced Houston Drowning Accident Lawyer

Call our experienced personal injury attorneys for a free conference about your rights and options if you have lost a family member and believe another is at fault.

We have been helping Texas families after wrongful death for over three decades. Our preeminent-rated personal injury law firm has extensive experience in drowning cases/ Maybe we can help you!

Call us for a free consultation today at (281) 587-1111.

Other Types of Cases Our Houston Personal Injury Lawyers Focus on:

Contact
a Leading Houston Drowning
Lawyer Right Away

Baumgartner Law Firm has been trusted by Texas families for over 35 years. Our reputation for getting maximum compensation has been earned through hard work and aggressive representation. Call Greg Baumgartner at Baumgartner Law Firm for a free consultation.

(281) 587-1111

VIEW MORE FAQS

Thank you
for a job well done!

"I can never express how grateful me and my family are to Greg Baumgartner and his team of truck accident lawyers in Houston. He took care of our injury case and got us a great settlement. Thank you for a job well done!"

- R. G. Client

Houston Personal Injury Victim

Highly
Recommended!

"I was hit in the rear by an 18 wheeler and was lucky enough to have found Greg – I was overjoyed with the results and highly recommend him."

- Raymond

Houston Personal Injury Victim

MORE TESTIMONIALS

CALL

(281) 587-1111

FOR A FREE CONSULTATION

SEE CASE RESULTS

REQUEST A FREE CONSULTATION!

Filing a Wrongful Death Case in Texas

How Long Do Houston Wrongful Death Lawsuits Take?

How Much are Wrongful Death Settlements in Houston

What You Need to Know About Wrongful Death Cases in Texas

Houston Drowning Accident Lawyer