Miami Tourist Accident Lawyer
Millions of people come to Miami for vacations, cruises, business trips, family visits, and special events. Unfortunately, a trip to South Florida can take an unexpected turn when a visitor is injured in a car accident.
Being hurt in a crash is difficult under any circumstances. Being injured hundreds or thousands of miles from home can make the situation even more confusing. You may be driving a rental car, staying in a hotel, preparing to board a cruise, or scheduled to fly home in a matter of days. Your doctors may be in another state or another country. Your health insurance and auto insurance may have been issued somewhere other than Florida. Meanwhile, an insurance company may already be asking you questions about the accident.
At Sotolongo Law, we represent tourists and other visitors injured in car accidents in Miami and throughout South Florida. We can investigate a collision here in Florida while you focus on recovering and returning home.
Miami tourist accident lawyer Pedro P. Sotolongo has more than 20 years of personal injury legal experience. His early legal career in medical malpractice defense also gives our boutique firm a valuable perspective on the medical issues involved in serious accident claims.
That experience taught him not only the law, but the medicine behind injury claims.
Because We Care® reflects how we approach every client—including those who may live thousands of miles from our Miami office.
What Happens If a Tourist Gets Into a Car Accident in Miami
If you are injured in a crash while visiting Miami, the fact that you live somewhere else does not prevent you from pursuing a claim against a person who negligently caused your injuries.
The accident occurred in Florida, so Florida law will likely play a central role in the claim. Depending on the circumstances, the case may involve a Florida driver, another tourist, a rental vehicle, a commercial vehicle, a rideshare driver, or several different insurance companies.
Common tourist accident locations and circumstances in Miami include crashes:
- Near Miami International Airport;
- On I-95, I-195, I-395, or the Dolphin Expressway;
- While traveling between Miami and Miami Beach;
- Around Downtown Miami and Brickell;
- Near PortMiami before or after a cruise;
- In rental vehicles;
- In Uber, Lyft, taxis, or other transportation services; and
While traveling to attractions, hotels, restaurants, or entertainment districts.
The first priority after any serious crash should be your health. If you need emergency medical attention, seek it immediately rather than worrying about how the accident may affect your travel schedule.
What to Do After a Car Accident While Visiting Miami
A tourist may feel pressure to handle an accident quickly because a flight, cruise departure, hotel checkout, or other travel deadline is approaching. A serious injury, however, should not be treated as an inconvenience to squeeze into a vacation itinerary.
If possible, report the accident to law enforcement and obtain information identifying the other drivers and their insurers. Photograph the vehicles, roadway, traffic signals, visible injuries, and surrounding area. Get contact information from witnesses.
Keep records related to your medical treatment and the disruption of your trip. That can include hospital paperwork, prescriptions, transportation expenses, hotel expenses, changed airline reservations, and other documents.
Florida law requires law enforcement reporting for specified crashes, including crashes involving injury or death. Florida also restricts public access to personal information in crash reports for 60 days, but parties involved in the crash, their legal representatives, insurers, and certain others can obtain them during that period.
Most importantly, do not ignore pain or other symptoms simply because you want to get home.
IF You Have to Leave Florida After the Accident
You generally do not have to remain in Miami simply because you were injured here.
Many tourists understandably want to return home as soon as they are medically able to travel. An attorney in Miami can continue investigating the accident, communicating with insurers, gathering evidence, and handling the Florida aspects of the claim after you leave.
Before departing, however, it can be useful to preserve as much evidence as possible. Evidence can disappear quickly. Vehicles are repaired, surveillance footage may be overwritten, witnesses become harder to locate, and memories fade.
An early investigation may include obtaining the crash report, photographing or inspecting vehicles, locating witnesses, seeking available video, documenting the crash location, and identifying applicable insurance policies.
Living outside Florida should not mean that the evidence in Miami is left unattended.
Continuing Medical Treatment After You Return Home
One of the most important issues in a tourist car accident claim is continuity of medical care.
You may receive initial treatment at a Miami emergency room or urgent care center and then continue treatment with physicians near your home. That can create a medical record spanning different facilities, doctors, states, or even countries.
Sotolongo Law understands how important that medical evidence can become.
Pedro P. Sotolongo practiced medical malpractice defense for five years before representing injured plaintiffs. That background helps him analyze medical records, communicate with physicians and experts, understand diagnoses and treatment recommendations, and prepare medical issues for litigation.
Every lawyer knows the law. Not every lawyer understands the medicine.
Car accident injuries can include traumatic brain injuries, concussions, fractures, spinal injuries, herniated discs, nerve injuries, orthopedic injuries, internal injuries, and soft-tissue injuries. Some symptoms may become more apparent after the initial shock of the crash subsides.
When a tourist returns home, it is important that the medical story does not become fragmented simply because treatment occurred in different places.
Crashes Involving Rental Cars
Rental vehicles are a major part of Miami tourism, and an accident involving one can create additional insurance questions.
Potential coverage may come from several sources, depending on the circumstances. These can include the negligent driver’s insurance, your own automobile policy, coverage associated with the rental agreement, optional insurance or waivers purchased at the rental counter, and potentially other sources.
The fact that you rented the vehicle does not mean the rental company is responsible for the crash. Liability depends on how the accident occurred and the legal basis for holding a particular person or entity responsible.
After a rental car crash, notify the rental company as required by your agreement, but be cautious about assuming that the first insurer or representative you speak with is responsible for protecting your interests.
Our firm can review the policies and agreements involved and determine what sources of compensation may be available.
If the At-Fault Driver Is Also a Tourist
Miami accidents sometimes involve two people who both live outside Florida.
That does not make the accident disappear once everyone goes home.
Florida law specifically addresses civil actions arising from accidents involving nonresident motorists. A nonresident who operates or permits a motor vehicle to be operated in Florida can, under Florida law, be subject to a mechanism for service of process in a civil action arising from a collision occurring in this state.
In practical terms, an at-fault driver cannot avoid a Florida accident claim simply by crossing the state line after vacation ends.
Cases involving residents of different states can raise jurisdiction, insurance, and procedural questions, which is one reason it can be helpful to work with a lawyer familiar with Florida accident litigation.
Which Insurance Applies to an Out-of-State Visitor
An accident can potentially involve insurance issued in Florida, another state, or another country. There may also be rental car coverage, rideshare insurance, commercial insurance, uninsured or underinsured motorist coverage, or other applicable policies.
Florida also has its own no-fault automobile insurance system called Personal Injury Protection, commonly known as PIP. How Florida’s insurance laws interact with a visitor’s out-of-state policy depends on the particular facts and coverage.
Instead of assuming that your home state’s rules control everything—or that Florida’s rules automatically apply to every part of your policy—a lawyer can review the actual insurance contracts and circumstances of the collision.
That analysis can be particularly important when injuries are serious and one driver’s liability limits are insufficient to cover the losses.
Compensation for a Tourist Injured in Miami
An injured visitor may suffer many of the same losses as a Florida resident, including medical expenses, lost income, pain and suffering, disability, and future medical needs when recoverable under applicable law.
Tourists can also face practical disruptions that residents may not experience. A serious collision could cause you to miss a flight, extend a hotel stay, abandon part of a vacation, or require a family member to travel to assist you.
Not every travel-related expense will necessarily be recoverable. The facts, causation, applicable law, and supporting documentation matter.
For serious injuries, the most significant issue may be what happens long after the vacation ends. Surgery, rehabilitation, inability to work, permanent limitations, or continuing pain can affect someone’s life for months or years.
That is why a claim should be evaluated based on the full consequences of the injury, not merely what happened during the few days following the crash.
How Long a Tourist Has to File a Florida Car Accident Lawsuit
Florida law provides a two-year statute of limitations for an action founded on negligence, such as a car accident claim. That deadline is particularly important for tourists because it can be easy to return home and put the legal aspects of a Florida accident aside while concentrating on medical treatment and everyday life.
There can also be exceptions, different deadlines, or additional notice requirements that make the timeframe longer or shorter depending on the defendant and type of claim. For example, a collision involving a government vehicle can present issues different from a typical claim against a private motorist.
The safest approach is not to wait until a limitations period is close to expiring. An attorney may need time to investigate the crash and preserve evidence long before a lawsuit is filed.
A Boutique Miami Firm for Visitors From Across the United States and Around the World
Miami welcomes visitors from across the country, Latin America, Europe, and beyond. Sotolongo Law understands that an injured tourist may need a law firm capable of handling a Florida claim while communicating clearly with a client who lives somewhere else.
We are particularly proud to serve Spanish-speaking clients and families. Miami is home to and visited by large Cuban, Venezuelan, Nicaraguan, Argentinian, and other Latin American and Hispanic communities, and their families and friends are welcome to call Sotolongo Law for Spanish-speaking legal representation.
A serious injury is complicated enough without a language barrier making the legal process harder.
As a boutique firm, Sotolongo Law offers personal attention while having experience taking on major insurance companies and powerful defendants. We want clients to know who is handling their case, understand what is happening, and feel comfortable asking questions.
Because We Care® means caring about the person behind the claim—not just where that person happens to live.
Frequently Asked Questions About Tourist Car Accidents in Miami
Can I hire a Miami car accident lawyer after I have already gone home?
Yes. Returning to your home state or country does not by itself prevent you from hiring a Miami attorney to investigate an accident that happened in Florida. In fact, having counsel in Miami can be especially helpful when evidence, witnesses, law enforcement records, and defendants are located in South Florida.
Do I have to stay in Miami until my insurance claim is resolved?
Generally, no. If you are medically able to travel, you ordinarily do not have to remain in Miami while an insurance claim is pending. You can continue appropriate medical treatment at home while your attorney handles the claim. Whether you need to return later will depend on how the case develops.
What happens if I was injured in a Miami rental car?
A rental car accident can involve several potential insurance sources. Coverage may depend on your personal auto policy, the other driver’s policy, the rental agreement, optional products you purchased, and the circumstances of the crash. The rental company’s involvement alone does not determine who is legally responsible.
Can I make a claim if I live outside the United States?
Living outside the United States does not, by itself, eliminate a potential claim for injuries caused in a Miami car accident. International cases can create additional practical and legal issues involving medical records, insurance, communication, travel, and litigation, so obtaining Florida legal advice early can be valuable.
What if my doctor is in my home state instead of Florida?
That is common for injured tourists. Initial treatment may occur in Miami, while follow-up care takes place closer to home. Those records can still be important evidence. Keeping your attorney informed about your doctors, diagnoses, treatment, referrals, and medical progress can help create a complete picture of your injuries.
Contact a Miami Tourist Car Accident Lawyer at Sotolongo Law
Your vacation may end, but the effects of a serious Miami car accident can follow you home.
If you were injured while visiting Miami or anywhere in South Florida, Sotolongo Law can investigate what happened here, deal with the insurance companies, and help you pursue your claim while you concentrate on your medical recovery.
With more than 20 years of personal injury legal experience and a background that combines courtroom knowledge with an understanding of medicine, Pedro P. Sotolongo brings a distinctive perspective to serious injury cases. Our boutique firm represents clients with personal attention while standing ready to confront large insurers and defendants.
Contact Sotolongo Law for a free consultation about your Miami tourist car accident. There are no attorney’s fees unless we successfully recover compensation for you.