Question 1

I was just in a car accident in Miami. What do I do in the first 24 hours?

Accepted Answer

Get medical attention, even if you feel fine. Adrenaline masks injury, and soft tissue and head injuries frequently present a day or two later. Make sure a Florida Traffic Crash Report was completed and get the report number. Photograph the vehicles, the scene, the road, the traffic controls, and any visible injuries. Get contact information for witnesses, because they scatter quickly and are difficult to find afterward. Do not give a recorded statement to any insurance carrier, including the carrier you pay premiums to, before you understand what is being asked. Do not sign a release. Note any nearby businesses that may have surveillance cameras pointing at the scene, since that footage is often overwritten within days. Then call a lawyer. See our guide on what to do after a car accident in Florida for the full walk-through.

Question 2

What is the 14-day rule in Florida and what happens if I miss it?

Accepted Answer

Florida's PIP statute, Fla. Stat. § 627.736, requires an injured person to seek initial medical treatment within 14 days of the accident. Miss that window and you can forfeit your PIP benefits entirely, which is $10,000 of coverage that pays regardless of who caused the crash. This catches people who felt fine at the scene, went home, and only started hurting a week or two later. The 14 days runs from the date of the accident, not from the date symptoms appeared. If you are near the deadline, go to a doctor, an urgent care, or an emergency room rather than waiting for an appointment.

Question 3

Should I talk to the insurance company before hiring an attorney?

Accepted Answer

Generally no, on the plaintiff side. The adjuster who calls the day after your accident sounds helpful and is trained to sound that way. Statements made to carriers before counsel is involved are routinely used to reduce or deny the claim, and a recorded statement is a permanent record of you describing your injuries before you knew what they were. Signed releases are difficult to undo. You are required to cooperate with your personal carrier, but cooperation is not the same as giving a recorded statement on the spot. Speaking with a lawyer before engaging the carrier protects the claim and its value. Initial consultations are confidential and carry no obligation to retain.

Question 4

How long do I have to file a personal injury claim in Florida?

Accepted Answer

For accidents occurring on or after March 24, 2023, the statute of limitations is 2 years under Fla. Stat. § 95.11(4)(a). HB 837 cut the deadline in half from the prior 4-year period. Accidents that occurred before March 24, 2023 may still be governed by the old 4-year period, so the date of the accident is one of the first things to confirm. Wrongful death is 2 years under Fla. Stat. § 95.11(4)(d). Claims against government entities in Florida carry distinct notice requirements and shorter windows. Medical malpractice and intentional torts follow different deadlines. Missing the statute of limitations permanently bars the claim, regardless of how strong it was. See our full Florida Statute of Limitations reference guide for the complete breakdown by case type.

Question 5

What changed under Florida's HB 837 tort reform?

Accepted Answer

HB 837, signed March 24, 2023, made several changes that affect nearly every Florida injury claim. It cut the negligence statute of limitations from 4 years to 2. It shifted Florida from pure comparative negligence to modified comparative negligence, meaning a plaintiff found more than 50 percent at fault now recovers nothing, where previously they could still recover a reduced amount. It changed the evidence rules for proving medical expenses. And it added notice and 90-day cure requirements before a bad faith claim can be brought against an insurance carrier. Injured plaintiffs have less time and face more procedural hurdles. Defendants and insurers gained meaningful protections. Cases now need to be built more carefully and started sooner.

Question 6

Can I still recover if the accident was partly my fault in Florida?

Accepted Answer

Yes, up to a point. Florida now follows modified comparative negligence under HB 837. If you are found 50 percent or less at fault, you can recover, but your recovery is reduced by your percentage of fault. If you are found more than 50 percent at fault, you recover nothing. That 50 percent line is now one of the most contested numbers in Florida injury cases, because it separates a reduced recovery from no recovery at all. Insurance carriers understand this and will work to push a plaintiff over the line. Liability development in the first 30 days is what prevents that.

Question 7

What is Florida's no-fault threshold and why does it matter?

Accepted Answer

Florida's no-fault threshold under Fla. Stat. § 627.737 controls when an injured person can sue the at-fault driver for pain, suffering, and other non-economic damages. The threshold requires significant and permanent loss of an important bodily function, permanent injury within a reasonable degree of medical probability, significant and permanent scarring or disfigurement, or death. Cases that meet the threshold can pursue full third-party damages against the driver who caused the crash. Cases below it are generally limited to PIP and medical payment benefits, which cap out quickly. Whether an injury crosses the threshold is a medical question with legal consequences, and it usually turns on how thoroughly the treating physicians documented permanency.

Question 8

What if the driver who hit me has no insurance?

Accepted Answer

This happens frequently in Florida, because Florida does not require drivers to carry bodily injury liability insurance. A driver can be fully legal on Florida roads with no coverage to pay for injuries they cause. When that happens, the first-party coverages become the case: your personal PIP, any medical payments coverage, and your uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage. UM and UIM coverage is frequently the primary recovery vehicle in these cases, and many people are unaware they carry it. Pull your policy declarations page before assuming there is no recovery available.

Question 9

What does it cost to hire a personal injury attorney in Miami?

Accepted Answer

Plaintiff personal injury cases are typically handled on contingency. The attorney is paid a percentage of the recovery only if there is a recovery, and there is no fee paid up front. Case costs such as filing fees, record charges, and witness fees are typically advanced by the firm and reimbursed at resolution. See our full Contingency Fee Guide for the exact percentages Florida law allows. If there is no recovery, the arrangement is discussed openly at the outset. Defense representation is structured differently, typically hourly or on a flat fee. The specifics are discussed at the initial consultation, which is free.

Question 10

The insurance company already offered me money. Should I take it?

Accepted Answer

An early offer usually arrives before anyone knows what the case is worth. Case value cannot be evaluated accurately until medical treatment is complete or the condition has stabilized, because until then nobody knows what the future medical care, the permanency, or the lost earning capacity looks like. Accepting an offer means signing a release, and a release ends the claim permanently. If the injury turns out to be worse than it appeared at week three, there is no going back. Have someone evaluate the offer against the medical record before you sign anything.

Question 11

How long does a personal injury case take in Miami-Dade?

Accepted Answer

It varies, and the medical treatment usually sets the pace. Cases that resolve through pre-suit demand and negotiation typically take 6 to 12 months from the conclusion of treatment. Cases that require filing suit in the Eleventh Judicial Circuit typically run 12 to 24 months. Complex cases with serious injuries, multiple defendants, or contested liability can run longer. Full medical treatment and stabilization is the gating factor on the plaintiff side, because case value cannot be evaluated accurately until treatment is complete or stable. Resolving before that point usually means leaving value on the table.

Question 12

Where would my injury case be filed in Miami-Dade?

Accepted Answer

Civil injury cases in Miami-Dade County are filed in the Eleventh Judicial Circuit of Florida. Cases seeking damages above the county court jurisdictional limit proceed in circuit civil, heard at the Miami-Dade County Courthouse on West Flagler Street in downtown Miami. Smaller claims proceed in county court. Which division a case lands in affects the discovery schedule, the trial timeline, and the practical posture of settlement negotiations. Most personal injury cases involving surgery, permanent impairment, or significant lost earnings are circuit civil matters.

Question 13

Will I work with Andre, or get handed off to someone else?

Accepted Answer

You work with Andre. The firm is a boutique practice by design. Andre conducts each consultation, reviews the medical records, drafts the demand package or the answer, takes the depositions, and appears in court personally. There is no junior attorney or settlement coordinator running the case out of view. The same attorney who takes the first call is the attorney who handles it through resolution. The caseload is kept where it is so that stays true.

Question 14

Does the firm represent both injured people and defendants?

Accepted Answer

Yes. The firm represents injured parties pursuing claims, and it represents drivers, businesses, property owners, and insureds defending them. Each side calls for different strategy, but the underlying preparation is the same. Knowing how the other side builds a file is useful when you are on either one. Conflicts are screened at intake on every matter.

Question 15

Do I have a case if I was hurt but the police did not write a report?

Accepted Answer

Possibly. A Florida Traffic Crash Report is useful evidence and its absence makes liability harder to establish, but it is not a legal requirement for bringing a claim. Liability can be proven through witness testimony, photographs, vehicle damage patterns, surveillance video, cell phone records, and accident reconstruction. What matters more than the report is how quickly the other evidence gets preserved. Slip and fall and premises cases frequently have no report at all and are still litigated successfully on the strength of incident reports, maintenance records, and surveillance footage.

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