In-Flight Injuries an Accident Waiting to Happen
Most in-flight airline injuries are minor, but serious injuries do occur. Every year airline passengers sustain minor, severe, and sometimes fatal injuries while aboard an aircraft. Baggage that falls from overhead compartments, severe turbulence, and slip and falls are the most common ways a passenger could sustain an airline injury. Passengers that have suffered any injury while in-flight might have a legal claim against an airline, its employees, aircraft manufacturers and even the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA.)
According to NOLO.com, there are about 4,500 airline passengers that sustain an injury from baggage falling from the overhead bins every year. It may seem surprising, but another common in-flight injury comes from rolling food carts. Food carts can injure passengers as they roll by and hit shoulders, elbows or other body parts. Some passengers have suffered from a slip and fall accident while walking to or from the airplane lavatories.
Most of the injuries mentioned occur because of unexpected turbulence. Passengers that fail to properly secure their safety belts have been thrown from their seats and severely injured. The FAA reports that 58 airline passengers are injured each year from not wearing their safety belts during turbulence.
The legal claims available to passengers that have been injured while in-flight depend on who or what caused the injury. Contacting a personal injury attorney will be the first step in determining if an injured passenger has a case. There are many different kinds of attorneys in Utah, so be sure to choose one that specializes in personal injury law.
If the injury was caused by the negligence of an airline employee such s a pilot, crew member or maintenance worker, then there is likely to be a claim for negligence. In a negligence claim, the injured party must be able to prove that the defendant was suppose to be careful but that they were not and their careless actions resulted in the injury.
Airline employees have been found to be negligent in certain circumstances. In some personal injury cases, employees have left items in the path of passengers that has caused them to trip and fall. They have also failed to do certain tasks such as properly latch an overhead bin.
The FAA has been found to be negligent in certain personal injury cases as well. If an FAA employee has been negligent in their air traffic control duties and an aircraft hits another aircraft — even while still on the ground — and a passenger is injured, the FAA could be sued for negligence causing personal injury. Because the FAA is a federal agency, certain rules will apply to this kind of lawsuit.
Some in-flight injuries that a Utah attorney could help passengers be compensated for are not caused by negligence alone. Sometimes the aircraft itself or components of it are defective. If defective parts or equipment injure a passenger, a liability claim could happen. The injuries that are common from product malfunction vary from defective overhead bin design to a mechanical error. A Utah attorney will determine if manufacturer is liable for sustained injuries.
According to NOLO.com, there are about 4,500 airline passengers that sustain an injury from baggage falling from the overhead bins every year. It may seem surprising, but another common in-flight injury comes from rolling food carts. Food carts can injure passengers as they roll by and hit shoulders, elbows or other body parts. Some passengers have suffered from a slip and fall accident while walking to or from the airplane lavatories.
Most of the injuries mentioned occur because of unexpected turbulence. Passengers that fail to properly secure their safety belts have been thrown from their seats and severely injured. The FAA reports that 58 airline passengers are injured each year from not wearing their safety belts during turbulence.
The legal claims available to passengers that have been injured while in-flight depend on who or what caused the injury. Contacting a personal injury attorney will be the first step in determining if an injured passenger has a case. There are many different kinds of attorneys in Utah, so be sure to choose one that specializes in personal injury law.
If the injury was caused by the negligence of an airline employee such s a pilot, crew member or maintenance worker, then there is likely to be a claim for negligence. In a negligence claim, the injured party must be able to prove that the defendant was suppose to be careful but that they were not and their careless actions resulted in the injury.
Airline employees have been found to be negligent in certain circumstances. In some personal injury cases, employees have left items in the path of passengers that has caused them to trip and fall. They have also failed to do certain tasks such as properly latch an overhead bin.
The FAA has been found to be negligent in certain personal injury cases as well. If an FAA employee has been negligent in their air traffic control duties and an aircraft hits another aircraft — even while still on the ground — and a passenger is injured, the FAA could be sued for negligence causing personal injury. Because the FAA is a federal agency, certain rules will apply to this kind of lawsuit.
Some in-flight injuries that a Utah attorney could help passengers be compensated for are not caused by negligence alone. Sometimes the aircraft itself or components of it are defective. If defective parts or equipment injure a passenger, a liability claim could happen. The injuries that are common from product malfunction vary from defective overhead bin design to a mechanical error. A Utah attorney will determine if manufacturer is liable for sustained injuries.
