Injuries sustained by tourists while on vacation in Florida can be devastating. Great vacations can create a lifetime of memories, and they are one of the only times of the year where we’re able to finally break-free from our everyday worries and truly relax. Unfortunately however, a small minority of businesses take advantage of this laissez-faire mentality. And when they do, it can sometimes result in serious injury or death. Parasail injury law has recently been affected by local Pensacola personal injury expert Zarzaur Law.
First, let it first be stated that most parasail companies are comprised of good people who care about the safety of its customers and pride themselves in providing an excellent experience. Like nearly everything, however, there are a fair number of parasail businesses that operate seasonally, have no real ties to the community and basically are running on a shoestring budget. These few bad companies have historically cut corners from everything involved in parasailing from the maintenance of use of the vessels used, failure to train parasail employees, failing to maintain or replace the parachute line and/or the failure to purchase insurance for injuries to their customers.
Thankfully, the Florida legislature has passed some much overdue legislation around parasail injury law that will provide some “common sense” protections over parasail businesses. These laws will make sure that companies do not send customers up when the wind is over 20 mph or gusting over 25 mph (common sense to most but not all). They also require that these companies carry a minimum of $1 million dollars per customer in liability coverage (again, you’d think this would have already been required for companies pulling human beings on a line over 300 feet in the air).
Zarzaur Law, P.A. has handled parasail cases and other watersport injury cases. “All of those cases were ‘fly by the seat of your pants’ companies that because of this law would now not be able to start such a business. We are happy that this parasail injury law has been passed in Florida. My hope is that these changes will help prevent further injuries or deaths by those few irresponsible businesses that place profits over safety,” says Joe Zarzaur.
A case Mr. Zarzaur handled was one of 23 parasail injuries cited by the proponents of this new parasail injury law in urging its passing. Mr. Zarzaur said that his case was settled for a confidential amount, but that it involved the loss of an eye when an old and worn out line that was being used snapped during a flight and blinded the rider. “Reckless folks will be deterred from even engaging in this risky business and that is a good thing for our community’s safety,” Zarzaur said.