Hurt on vacation in Alabama — already home?

If you were hurt in Orange Beach, Gulf Shores, or on the Fort Morgan peninsula and you already flew home, you do not have to come back to Alabama to have a lawyer here. The wreck, the fall, or the cart accident happened under Alabama law. That does not change because you are sitting in another state now.

Lattof Injury Law is at The Wharf — 4593 Main Street, Suite C-204 — facing Canal Road. Mitch and Ashton Lattof handle these cases. Call 251-432-6691. The first conversation is free, and you pay nothing on an injury case unless we recover for you.

Alabama law still applies after you leave

A visitor injury is still an Alabama case when the wreck or fall happened here. Baldwin County injury lawsuits are filed in Bay Minette. Serious injuries from this corridor often go first to South Baldwin Regional Medical Center in Foley. We work that file from Orange Beach while you recover at home.

You do not need a second trip for a consult. We use Zoom, phone, and email. Most out-of-state clients never make a second trip. That process is also on our Injured on Vacation in Gulf Shores or Orange Beach page. This post is what happens next.

What gets harder once you are gone

Weekly rentals turn over. The next Saturday’s guests did not see the step, the cart, or the wet tile. Seasonal witnesses leave. Cameras overwrite. The other driver may live four states away.

Get these into our hands early, even from home:

• Medical records from here and from your doctors at home
• Photos of the scene, the vehicle or cart, the floor or stairs, and your injuries
• Names and numbers of witnesses, if you still have them
• The rental packet, HOA or condo rules, and any incident report
• The Alabama crash report (you can request it from ALEA after a wreck)

We will tell you what we can see — including if the case is not one we should take.

Two Alabama rules visitors get surprised by

Alabama generally gives you two years from the injury to file suit. Some claims are shorter. On this coast the practical problem is faster than the deadline: evidence is often gone long before year two.

Alabama also uses contributory negligence. If an insurer can put even 1% of the fault on you, it may owe you nothing. That is why an adjuster calls quickly and asks for a recorded statement. Do not give one before you talk to a lawyer. A “quick call to sort it out” from another state is still a recorded statement.

We wrote more about that rule in slip-and-fall cases here: Alabama’s contributory negligence rule in slip and fall cases.

Zoom with the attorneys, not a case manager

This is a two-lawyer shop. You work with Mitch and Ashton Lattof, not a case manager in another city. We keep the caseload small on purpose. If you cannot travel, we still take the case. If you are still in town, we will meet you at The Wharf, at a rental, or at the hospital.

The same office handles injuries in Orange Beach, Gulf Shores, and Fort Morgan, including golf cart wrecks.

What to do this week, from home

1. Keep every medical appointment and every record.
2. Save the photos and the rental paperwork in one place.
3. Do not give a recorded statement to the other driver’s insurer, the rental company, or the HOA.
4. Call 251-432-6691 or use our contact form. We will set Zoom.

Educational information on this page is not a promise about your case. Alabama advertising disclosures: lattoflaw.com/disclaimer/.

Talk to us

Call 251-432-6691. Injury cases are contingency fee: you pay nothing unless we recover for you.

Lattof Injury Law — 4593 Main Street, Suite C-204, Orange Beach, AL 36561 (The Wharf). Phone: 251-432-6691.