JZ helps (a Florida injury law firm)

Call Now! (888) 594-3577Get a Free Consultation - 24 / 7
Se habla Español
Call Now! (888) 594-3577
Get a Free Consultation - 24 / 7
Se habla Español


  • Home
  • Videos
  • Blog
  • Settlements
    • Injury Settlements
    • Car Accident Settlements
    • Slip, Trip & Fall Settlements
    • GEICO Car Accident Settlements
    • Rear End Car Accident Settlements
    • Motorcycle Accidents Settlements
    • Truck Accident Settlements
    • State Farm Settlements
    • Uber Accidents
    • Progressive Insurance Settlements
    • Bike Accident Settlements
    • Pedestrian Hit By Car Settlements
    • Uninsured Motorist Insurance Settlements
  • About Us
    • About Us
    • See Inside
    • Types of Injuries We’ve Dealt With
    • List of Cities Where We’ve Settled Cases
    • Press Room
  • Fees
    • Our Fees
    • Referral Fees
  • Cases We Handle
    • All personal injury cases
    • Car Accidents
    • Truck Accidents
    • Uber Accidents
    • Slip and Falls and Injuries on Property
    • Cruise Accidents
    • Florida Motorcycle Accidents
    • Pedestrian Accidents
    • Accidents at a Store
    • DUI Accidents
    • Accidental or Wrongful Death
    • Florida Condo and Apartment Accidents
    • Hotel Accidents
  • Get a Free Case Review
  • Reviews
You are here: Home / Wrongful Death Claims / Can Children Get Money if a Parent Dies in an Accident in Florida?

February 12, 2022 By Justin Ziegler, Lawyer 2 Comments

Can Children Get Money if a Parent Dies in an Accident in Florida?

child get money parent killed died accident in Florida Miami

Children of decedents are considered survivors under Florida’s Wrongful Death Act. The Wrongful Death Act applies if someone else was careless and killed your parent.

Children of the decedent may recover some types of damages as “survivors.” 

The compensation that a child gets may depend on whether the child is considered a “minor child” under the Wrongful Death Act.

Table of contents

  • Who is a “minor child” under Florida’s Wrongful Death Act?
  • Can a Child Get Compensation if Their Parent (Who Dies) Wasn’t Married?
  • Example if Parent Was Married When He or She Died
  • Example is Parent Was Not Married When Killed
  • See Our Settlements
  • Call Us Now!
    • No Fees or Costs if We Do Not Get You Money

Who is a “minor child” under Florida’s Wrongful Death Act?

The Wrongful Death Act states that “minor children” are children under the age of 25. (Florida Statutes 768.12)

Any child of the decedent, regardless of age, has the ability to recover the value of lost support and services from the day of the decedent’s injury forward.  Florida Statute 768.21.

If the decedent was married at the time of his or her death, minor children can also recover damages for:

  • Mental pain and suffering from the date of the decedent’s accident
  • Lost parental companionship, instruction and guidance

Can a Child Get Compensation if Their Parent (Who Dies) Wasn’t Married?

If the decedent dies and at the time of his death he or she does not have surviving spouse, a child of any age may have a claim for lost instruction, parental companionship and guidance, and for mental pain and suffering from the date of the decedent’s injury. Florida Statute 768.21.  But, if the decedent dies due to the carelessness of a medical professional, such as a doctor, children over the age of 25 can’t recover these damages.

Even if someone causes your parent’s accident, and you are entitled to pain and suffering under Florida’s wrongful death act, in order to actually get money the person – or company  – that caused your parent’s accident has to have money to pay you.

Most of the time, payment from the person who caused the accident comes from:

  • his or her bodily injury liability insurance if the death was caused by a car accident.
  • the decedent’s or a resident relative of the decedent’s uninsured/underinsured motorist car insurance policy.

Example if Parent Was Married When He or She Died

Assume that John is 48, Sandra is 35, and Fred is 24. Their father Bill is married to their mother Mary. Bill is killed in a car accident in Miami, Florida when a truck rear-ended Bill’s car.

Mary was also in the car, and was badly injured. Sadly, she dies 8 days later due to injuries sustained from the crash.

Because the accident occurred in Miami, which is located in Florida, the Florida Wrongful Death Act applies. If the accident occurred in Ft. Lauderdale, Orlando, or any city in Florida, the Florida Wrongful Death Act still applies.

The siblings decide that John is going to be the personal representative of the estate. In Florida, the personal representative brings the wrongful (accidental) death claim. 

Fred may recover damages for mental pain and suffering, and lost parental companionship, instruction and guidance arising from both his mother and his father’s death. This is because Fred is 24 and is therefore considered a “minor child” under Florida’s wrongful death act.

John and Sandra do not have a case to get money for mental pain and suffering, or lost parental companionship, instruction and guidance resulting from their father’s death because they are more than 25 years old and their father was married at the time of his death.

John and Sandra are not considered “minor children” under the Florida wrongful death act.

Example is Parent Was Not Married When Killed

But what happens if Bill was not married at the time of his death?

In that instance, John and Sandra may have a case to get mental pain and suffering, or lost parental companionship, instruction and guidance from the date of the accident forward. This is because John and Sandra are adult children and their father would not have been married.

I invite you to learn more about actual settlements (and verdicts) for pain and suffering of a child in a case where a parent is killed in an accident or crime. You can also read about whether a parent has a case if their “minor child is killed in an accident or incident in Florida. You can also read about whether a parent has a case if his or her “adult child” was killed in an accident or incident, including but not limited to a:

  • car, truck or motorcycle accident
  • murder
  • ATV accident
  • drunk driving accident
  • medical malpractice
  • nursing home neglect (negligence)
  • bicycle (bike) accident

See Our Settlements

Check out some of the many Florida injury cases that we have settled, including but not limited to car accidents, truck accidents, slip or trip and falls, motorcycle accidents, drunk driving (DUI) accidents, pedestrian accidents, drunk driving accidents, taxi accidents, bicycle accidents, store or supermarket accidents, cruise ship accidents, wrongful death, dog bites and much more.

Our Miami law firm represents people anywhere in Florida if someone’s carelessness caused their injuries in car accidents, truck accidents, slip, trip and falls, motorcycle accidents, bike accidents, drunk driving crashes, pedestrian accidents, cruise ship or boat accidents, store or supermarket accidents, wrongful death, accidents at someone else’s home, condo or apartment, accidents involving a Uber or Lyft Driver, and many other types of accidents.

Did someone’s carelessness cause your family member’s death in Florida, or on a cruise? 

We want to represent you if you were injured in an accident in Florida, on a cruise ship or boat. If you live in Florida but were injured in another state we may also be able to represent you.  We can also represent you if a family member was killed in Florida.

Call Us Now!

Call us now at (888) 594-3577 to find out for FREE if we can represent you. We answer calls 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year. 

No Fees or Costs if We Do Not Get You Money
Miami and Florida Injury Cases Attorney No Fees or Costs if We don't get you money.

We speak Spanish. We invite you to learn more about us.

Editor’s Note: This post was originally published in April 2013 and has been completely revamped and updated.

Related

Filed Under: Wrongful Death Claims

I will not become your attorney by you leaving a comment. There is a time limit to file a lawsuit. All comments will be public. This includes the name that you enter. I only represent people who were hurt in Florida or on a cruise ship; or if the injured person lives in Florida or a family member (in the case of a death) lives in Florida. This is because I am only licensed in Florida.

Comments

  1. Kimberly Hardin says

    February 8, 2022 at 10:42 am

    A writing mishaps of a single character error in your article “Can Children Get Money if a Parent Dies in an Accident in Florida?” could greatly reduces your credibility.
    Under lets look at an example; the first paragraph states the mother Mary died in 8 days but lower down in the post it says she died in 3 making me think it was made up.
    Your firm would have definately been on my list of top choices had it not been for that error. The informaiton was useful and writing kept me engaged through the entire writing. I was looking for information of tax considerations.

    Reply
    • Justin Ziegler, Lawyer says

      February 12, 2022 at 9:44 am

      Thank you for pointing this out. I fixed it. Have a nice weekend.

      Disclaimer: My blog/website is for informational purposes only. Always speak with a lawyer of your particular situation.

      Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Serving Florida

Get a Free Consultation. JZ helps (a Florida injury law firm)

Get a Free Consult Now

Complete this form to see if I can represent you. We usually respond fast.

"*" indicates required fields

Name*
MM slash DD slash YYYY
We only represent people for injury or death that happened in Florida (or on a cruise). However, if you live in Florida and the incident happened in another state, we may be able to represent you.
If your accident did NOT happen in Florida or on a cruise, and you don't live in Florida, I likely won't be able to represent you.
Select your most serious injury.
For example, damage to a car(s), hazard that you tripped on, incident scene, crash report, major scarring, etc.
Drop files here or
Max. file size: 50 MB.
    By submitting this form I agree to the Terms of Use.

    We’re Open!

    No Fees or Costs if No Recovery

    Florida Injury Lawyer

    Personal injury lawyer Justin "JZ" Ziegler has recovered over $15 Million in settlements for people seriously hurt in accidents in Florida (or on a cruise).

    We want to represent you. Our office is in Coral Gables (Miami-Dade County), Florida. However, we can meet you anywhere in Florida. Call (888) 594-3577 for a Free Consultation Now!

    Search

    Florida Injury Case Types

    • Auto Accident Claims
    • Cruise Accident Claims
    • Florida Motor Vehicle No-Fault Law, Personal Injury Protection (PIP)
    • Foot and Ankle Injury Claims
    • Hand & Wrist Injury Claims
    • Herniated Disc Claims
    • Lyft accidents
    • Personal Injury
    • Premises Liability
    • Shoulder Injury Claims
    • Slip, Trip and Fall
    • Spinal Injuries
    • Truck Accident Claims
    • Uber Accidents
    • Uninsured Motorist Claims
    • Wrongful Death Claims

    Connect With Us

    • Facebook
    • YouTube

    2010

    Super Lawyers

    2005 & 2006 Up & Coming 

    Interviewed by:

    WSVN 7 Miami

    Miami Herald

    NBC6

    CNNwall street journalQuoted in:
    Miami New TimesTBO - Tampa Tribune

    Telegraph

    Member of:Florida Justice Association

    Florida Justice Association, and Florida Bar

    Subscribe to Blog via Email

    Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

    We Handle:

    Car accidents, slip and falls, motorcycle accidents, Uber accidents and more.

    We’ve settled many cases with GEICO, State Farm, Progressive, USAA and others.

    We’ve settled cases for people who’ve injured their shoulder, hand, broken a leg, arm, foot and much more.

    Disclaimers

    Follow Us

    • Facebook
    • YouTube

    Attorney Justin “JZ” Ziegler

    Get a Free Consultation Now!

    We’ve had over $11 million in injury settlements for accidents in Miami, Homestead, Hialeah and throughout Florida.

    We’ve settled many personal injury claims in Miami.  However, we’ve also settled cases throughout the entire state of Florida.  This includes several settlements for over $195,000 for accidents that happened in Fort Lauderdale, the Orlando area, Clearwater, Pensacola and other cities.

    Contact Us

    JZ helps (a Florida injury law firm)
    1450 Madruga Ave., Suite 306B
    Coral Gables, Florida 33146

    Our office is near the University of Miami.  Serving all of Florida.

    1-888-JZ-Helps (1-888-594-3577) or 305-661-9977

    24 hours / 7 days a week

    En Español

    We’re also proud of our results in other parts of the state (as well as the Miami area).  Therefore, I call myself a Miami injury lawyer who serves all of Florida.

    Copyright © 2023 · JZ helps (a Florida injury law firm)