How Florida law handles walk-in tub injury and death claims: strict product liability, shared fault, who brings a wrongful death claim and filing deadlines.
When a walk-in tub injury or death happens in Florida, Florida law decides who can bring a claim, how fault is shared and what a family can recover. Our walk-in tub accident lawyers are based in Palm Beach County and take walk-in tub cases from across the state. No win, no fee.
How Does Florida Law Handle Walk-In Tub Product Claims?
Florida holds manufacturers strictly liable for defective products. The Florida Supreme Court adopted that rule in West v. Caterpillar Tractor Co. (1976). A walk-in tub claim can rest on a design defect, a manufacturing defect or a failure to warn, and it can also rest on negligence, such as a careless installation or repair. Our guide explains the three kinds of product claims.
How Does Florida's Comparative Negligence Rule Work?
Under Florida's comparative negligence rule, a person's recovery is reduced by their own share of fault. Anyone found more than 50 percent at fault for their own harm recovers nothing (Fla. Stat. § 768.81). The same rule covers product liability claims.
In a walk-in tub case, the other side may argue that the bather or a caregiver caused the accident. The tub, the records and what witnesses saw are how we answer that.
Who Can Bring a Walk-In Tub Wrongful Death Claim in Florida?
Florida's Wrongful Death Act gives the claim to the personal representative of the person's estate, who brings it for the survivors and the estate (Fla. Stat. § 768.20). What each person can recover depends on their relationship (Fla. Stat. § 768.21):
- Each survivor: lost support and services.
- A surviving spouse: lost companionship and protection, and mental pain and suffering.
- Minor children, and all children when there is no surviving spouse: lost parental companionship, instruction and guidance, and mental pain and suffering.
- Parents of a minor child: mental pain and suffering. Parents of an adult child can recover it only when there are no other survivors.
- Anyone who paid them: medical and funeral expenses.
- The estate: lost earnings and, in some cases, lost savings the person would have built, plus medical and funeral expenses the estate paid.
If no personal representative has been appointed yet, call us anyway. We can explain how that works.
What Are Florida's Filing Deadlines?
Florida sets different deadlines for different claims (Fla. Stat. § 95.11):
- Negligence claims, such as a careless installation: two years.
- Wrongful death claims: two years.
- Injury claims based on the design, manufacture, distribution or sale of a product: four years, counted from when the facts behind the claim were discovered (Fla. Stat. § 95.031).
Florida also has an outer limit for many products. A claim is generally barred when the harm happens more than 12 years after the product was first delivered to a buyer, with exceptions (Fla. Stat. § 95.031). A tub built into a home may be treated differently from a freestanding product, which can change the deadline. Call us early so we can work out which deadline applies.
What Should You Do After a Walk-In Tub Accident in Florida?
The steps are the same anywhere: get care, write down what happened, keep the tub and every part, and save the paperwork. Our checklist, What to Do After a Walk-In Tub Accident, walks through each one.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, as long as your parent was not more than 50 percent at fault. Florida reduces the recovery by their share of fault under Florida Statutes section 768.81.
The personal representative of the estate, for the benefit of the survivors and the estate, under Florida Statutes section 768.20.
Yes. We take walk-in tub cases from across Florida.
Nothing up front. The case review is free, and we work on a no win, no fee basis.
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