Did you know that over 4500 passengers are struck down by falling baggage in-flight each year? In fact, a study in 1998 showed that out of 426 incidents of in-flight injuries, 67 would result in bruising, and another 53 would result in lacerations. In-flight injuries can be rather severe at times. Passengers have reportedly suffered from minimal traumatic brain injury (MTBI). If you are one of the unfortunate few that have sustained an injury in-flight, you should consider contacting an accident lawyer in order to determine whether you have a cause for a lawsuit, and in order to calculate the amount of compensation that you deserve. In this article, we'll explore the type of claims that you can use, and who you can hold responsible for you injuries.
What Type of Claims Can You Make?
If you are a victim of in-flight injuries, you can make file a claim against the airline, or the Federal Aviation Agency (FAA) in the event that you can prove that the injuries that you have sustained are a result of their negligence. Simply becoming injured is not sufficient in determine who is at fault. You must be able to pinpoint what happened that caused the injury, and what the airline or the FAA could have done to prevent the accident from happening.
Keep in mind that suing the airline and suing the FAA is completely different. Since the FAA is a federal agency, different rules and regulations apply. If you want to proceed with a lawsuit, you will need to be able to abide by the procedures that have been outlined. The FAA is responsible for controlling air traffic. You should sue the FAA if your injuries are due to inattention by the FAA. For example, if the traffic controller was not paying proper attention, and did not direct an airplane properly, it may accidentally bump against some of the support that are present; thus, causing a "fender bender" that may cause you to have fallen over in-flight. This would have been completely avoidable if the traffic controller had paid more attention.
What Is the Common Carrier Standard?
By law, the airline is considered to be a common carrier. This means that the law requires them to have a heightened duty of care in comparison to other companies, and will need to be responsible for the health and wellbeing of their passengers. The airline is responsible for protecting passengers from potential harm.
The common carrier standard will cause the airlines to have a heightened duty of care during boarding, time spent in-flight, and exiting the plane. Once the passengers are off the plane, the airline is no longer held responsible for any accidents that may happen.
What Constitutes As An Act of Negligence?
It can be difficult to determine what constitutes as an act of negligence, especially when you are not familiar with the laws surrounding in-flight injuries. It is generally best to consult with an accident attorney for a better idea. The attorney will typically pair up with experts in order to analyze the circumstances of each case in order to determine whether there was anything that the airline could have potentially done to stop the accident from happening in the first place.
For example, the experts may take a look at whether the planes were properly inspected, and whether all personnel onboard have proper training. Every year, 58 Americans are injured due to turbulences. The experts may take a look at whether the turbulence was unavoidable or not.
What Is An Act of God?
The airline is able to use an "act of god" as a defence. An airline is not liable for accidents that have happened due to "acts of god". This is defined as events that could not be predicted and could not be avoided. Injuries due to turbulences can be considered as "acts of god" as airlines cannot always predict when turbulences will strike even if they have the best technology installed on the plane. However, if the turbulence was detectable, and the pilot chose not to avoid it, the airlines may be held responsible.
Conclusion
In-flight injuries are not uncommon. If you have sustained injuries in-flight, you should consider consulting with an accident attorney such as George T. Bochanis Law Offices in order to determine whether you have any grounds for a case. You may want to consider seeking immediate medical attention in order to document the severity and type of injuries that you have sustained. This can be used as evidence to support your claims in the future.
