Florida Wrongful Death FAQs

Losing a family member because of someone else’s alleged negligence or wrongful conduct can leave a family facing legal and financial questions while still trying to process the loss. Florida wrongful death cases are also different from ordinary personal injury claims because Florida law determines who files the lawsuit, which family members may qualify as survivors, and what damages may potentially be recovered.

The Florida wrongful death lawyers at the Law Offices of Jason Turchin represent families in Miami and throughout Florida in claims involving fatal car and truck accidents, dangerous property conditions, defective products, negligent security, and other preventable deaths.

These frequently asked questions provide general information about Florida wrongful death claims. Every case is different, and the rights of individual family members can depend on their relationship to the person who died and the circumstances of the death.

What is considered a wrongful death in Florida?

Florida’s Wrongful Death Act generally provides a potential cause of action when a person’s death is caused by another person’s or entity’s wrongful act, negligence, default, or breach of contract or warranty under circumstances where the person who died could have maintained a claim if death had not occurred.

In simpler terms, a wrongful death claim may exist when another person or company could have been legally responsible for someone’s injuries and those injuries instead resulted in death.

A fatal accident does not automatically create a wrongful death claim. There generally must be a legal basis for holding another party responsible.

What types of accidents can result in a Florida wrongful death claim?

Wrongful death is not limited to one type of accident. Depending on the facts, potential claims may arise from:

• Fatal car accidents
• Truck and tractor-trailer crashes
• Motorcycle accidents
• Pedestrian and bicycle accidents
• Scooter accidents
• Defective products
• Pressure cooker explosions and product-related burns
• Dangerous property conditions
• Slip and fall or trip and fall accidents
• Negligent security and violent criminal attacks
• Swimming pool and drowning accidents
• Cruise ship accidents
• Workplace accidents involving potentially responsible third parties
• Other incidents caused by alleged negligence or wrongful conduct

Our firm has handled wrongful death matters arising from motor vehicle crashes, pedestrian accidents, scooter accidents, shootings, drowning, and other circumstances involving allegedly negligent or wrongful conduct.

Who files a wrongful death lawsuit in Florida?

Under Florida law, the wrongful death action is generally brought by the personal representative of the estate of the person who died.

The personal representative brings the action for the benefit of the decedent’s eligible survivors and the estate. This is an important distinction because individual family members generally do not each file separate wrongful death lawsuits arising from the same death.

Who are considered “survivors” under Florida’s Wrongful Death Act?

Florida law defines survivors to include the decedent’s spouse, children, and parents. Certain blood relatives and adoptive brothers and sisters may also qualify when they were partly or wholly dependent on the decedent for support or services.

However, being a statutory survivor does not necessarily mean that every survivor can recover every category of wrongful death damages. The damages potentially available can depend on the survivor’s relationship to the person who died, age, dependency, and other circumstances.

Can a spouse recover damages for wrongful death in Florida?

A surviving spouse may potentially recover the value of lost support and services and, where permitted by Florida law, compensation for the loss of the decedent’s companionship and protection and for mental pain and suffering.

The precise damages available should be evaluated based on the facts and the type of underlying wrongful death claim.

Can children recover damages when a parent dies?

Children may potentially recover certain damages under Florida’s Wrongful Death Act. Those damages can include lost support and services and, in circumstances permitted by the statute, damages associated with the loss of parental companionship, instruction, and guidance and mental pain and suffering.

Florida’s Wrongful Death Act uses a specific definition of “minor children” that differs from the ordinary age of majority. For purposes of the Act, a minor child is generally a child under 25 years old.

Can parents recover damages when a child dies in Florida?

Parents of a deceased minor child may potentially recover damages for mental pain and suffering under Florida’s Wrongful Death Act. Parents of an adult child may also potentially have rights under particular circumstances.

The availability of damages can depend on factors including the child’s age, other survivors, and the type of claim involved. These issues should be evaluated individually rather than assuming that every parent has the same recoverable damages.

What damages can be recovered in a Florida wrongful death case?

Florida law divides potential wrongful death damages between damages recoverable for eligible survivors and damages that may be recoverable by the estate.

Depending on the circumstances, potential damages may include:

• Loss of support and services
• Loss of companionship and protection where authorized by law
• Loss of parental companionship, instruction, and guidance where authorized
• Mental pain and suffering for qualifying survivors where authorized
• Certain medical or funeral expenses
• Loss of the decedent’s prospective net accumulations in circumstances permitted by law
• Other damages available under the Florida Wrongful Death Act

Not every category applies to every family. Determining potential damages requires identifying all survivors and examining their individual relationships with the person who died.

What are “net accumulations” in a Florida wrongful death case?

Net accumulations generally refer to the portion of the decedent’s expected future net business or salary income, including certain pension benefits, that the person probably would have retained as savings and left as part of the estate if he or she had lived a normal life expectancy.

Calculating potential net accumulations can involve income history, career trajectory, taxes, personal expenses, support obligations, work-life expectancy, and other financial evidence. Economists or other experts may be used in appropriate cases.

What if the person who died did not have a will?

A will is not required for a wrongful death claim to potentially exist.

If there is no will naming a personal representative, Florida probate law provides procedures for determining who may be appointed to administer the estate. The appropriate person may depend on the decedent’s family circumstances and other factors.

Because the wrongful death action is generally brought by the personal representative, opening an estate and obtaining the appropriate appointment may be an important early part of the case.

Can a family member bring the wrongful death lawsuit instead of opening an estate?

Florida law generally requires the decedent’s personal representative to bring the wrongful death action for the benefit of the survivors and estate. A spouse, adult child, parent, or another appropriate person may ultimately serve as personal representative, but the necessary probate procedures generally need to be followed.

How long do I have to file a wrongful death lawsuit in Florida?

Florida wrongful death actions are generally subject to a two-year statute of limitations. There can be important exceptions and special rules depending on the defendant and type of claim.

For example, claims involving governmental entities can be subject to separate presuit notice procedures, waiting periods, and sovereign immunity requirements. Medical negligence deaths can also involve special presuit procedures.

Families should not wait until the two-year anniversary to investigate a claim. Evidence can disappear much earlier. Surveillance footage may be overwritten, vehicles and products can be destroyed or repaired, witnesses can become difficult to locate, and important records may become harder to obtain.

What should our family do after a suspected wrongful death?

Every situation is different, but preserving evidence can be extremely important. Depending on how the death occurred, consider preserving:

• Photographs and videos
• Vehicles or allegedly defective products
• Receipts and purchase records
• Cell phone information
• Witness names and contact information
• Police or incident report information
• Medical records
• Employment and income records
• Insurance information
• Communications concerning the incident

If a vehicle, defective product, or other physical evidence may be important, consider speaking with a Florida wrongful death attorney before allowing it to be destroyed, repaired, returned, or otherwise materially altered.

Can there be a wrongful death claim after a fatal car accident?

Yes, depending on the circumstances. A potential car accident wrongful death claim may arise when a driver allegedly causes a fatal collision through negligent conduct.

Potential defendants can sometimes extend beyond the driver. Depending on the facts, an investigation may consider a vehicle owner, employer, commercial trucking company, maintenance provider, product manufacturer, or another responsible party.

Can a truck accident result in a wrongful death lawsuit?

Potentially. Fatal truck accidents can require investigation of the truck driver as well as the trucking company and other potentially responsible entities.

Evidence may include electronic logging information, vehicle data, driver qualification records, maintenance records, dispatch information, photographs, video, and other records. Some evidence can be particularly time-sensitive.

Can a defective product cause a wrongful death claim?

Yes. A product liability wrongful death claim may potentially arise when an allegedly defective consumer product, vehicle component, battery, appliance, medical product, or other product causes a fatal injury.

Preserving the product can be critical. Families should generally avoid disposing of, repairing, returning, or materially altering a potentially defective product before its evidentiary significance can be evaluated, provided the item can be preserved safely.

Can a property owner be responsible for a murder or fatal criminal attack?

Potentially, but these cases can be complicated. A negligent security or premises liability claim may sometimes arise after a fatal shooting or other criminal attack when there is a legally sufficient basis for holding a property owner or another party responsible.

Florida law concerning liability for criminal acts committed by third parties has changed significantly in recent years. The particular property, security measures, circumstances of the attack, applicable statutory provisions, and other evidence should be evaluated carefully.

What if my loved one was partly at fault for the accident?

Allegations of comparative fault can affect some wrongful death claims. The effect depends on the underlying cause of action and applicable Florida law.

For many negligence claims, Florida’s modified comparative fault rules may limit or potentially bar recovery depending on the percentage of responsibility attributed to the decedent. Fault is often disputed, and an insurance company’s allegation that the person who died contributed to the accident does not determine the ultimate allocation of responsibility.

What if my family lives outside Florida but the death occurred in Florida?

Living outside Florida does not necessarily prevent a family from pursuing a Florida wrongful death claim.

Our firm represents families who live outside Florida when a fatal accident occurred here. Much of the investigation, estate coordination, communication, and litigation process can often be handled remotely through telephone calls, video conferences, electronic documents, and local counsel coordination when necessary.

Whether family members eventually need to travel to Florida depends on how the case develops.

Do I need a Florida wrongful death lawyer?

Florida wrongful death cases can involve issues that do not arise in ordinary personal injury claims, including probate proceedings, appointment of a personal representative, identification of statutory survivors, allocation of damages, preservation of evidence, and potentially complex questions about who can recover particular damages.

An attorney can investigate the incident, identify potentially responsible parties, help preserve evidence, coordinate with probate counsel when necessary, and evaluate the damages potentially available to the survivors and estate.

Additional information is available through the Law Offices of Jason Turchin wrongful death practice.

How much is a Florida wrongful death case worth?

There is no standard settlement amount for a wrongful death case. Potential value can depend on liability, available insurance or assets, the decedent’s age and income, the identity and ages of survivors, the relationships between survivors and the decedent, lost support and services, the damages legally available to each survivor and the estate, and many other factors.

A meaningful evaluation requires considerably more information than simply knowing how the death occurred.

How much does it cost to hire a Florida wrongful death lawyer?

Our wrongful death cases are handled on a contingency fee basis. There are no attorney fees or costs owed to our firm unless there is a recovery.

Why Families Choose the Law Offices of Jason Turchin

Attorney Jason Turchin has more than 20 years of experience representing injury victims and families in serious injury and wrongful death claims. His professional recognition includes:

• AV Preeminent Peer Rated for Highest Level of Professional Excellence, 2026
• AVVO 10.0 Superb Rating
• Super Lawyers, 2020 through 2026
• A+ BBB Rated annually from 2014 through 2026
• Martindale-Hubbell Client Champion Platinum Award, 2026
• Member of the Million Dollar Advocates Forum List
• Member of the Multi-Million Dollar Advocates Forum List

Learn more about Jason Turchin, review our prior verdicts and settlements, or read our client reviews.

Speak With a Florida Wrongful Death Lawyer

If you believe a family member died because of another person’s or company’s negligence or wrongful conduct, the Law Offices of Jason Turchin can review what happened and determine whether we may be able to help.

Call 800-337-7755 or chat with our live agents for a free consultation. We represent families in Miami and throughout Florida, as well as families living outside Florida whose loved one suffered a fatal accident in the state.

All cases are handled on a contingency fee basis, meaning there are no fees or costs owed to our firm unless there is a recovery.