Tampa Car Accident Attorney
One moment on I-275 can change everything. From that moment, the burden shifts — from your shoulders to ours. You heal. Chris handles the insurance company.
A crash doesn’t just shake you up. It takes over your life.
Suddenly you’re managing medical care, missed work, a wrecked vehicle, and an insurance adjuster who calls before your pain medication wears off. All while trying to heal.
Here’s the truth: you’re not alone, and you’re not powerless. Chris Debari has fought for people who are injured, unheard, and under pressure — calm, direct, relentless. You’ll talk to Chris himself, not a case manager, and the consultation costs nothing.
Four steps that protect your case.
STEP 1Get medical attention — even if you feel fine
Injuries surface late, and Florida’s PIP insurance generally requires treatment within 14 days of the crash. Seeing a doctor protects your health and your claim at once.
STEP 2Document everything
Photos of the scene and vehicles, witness names, the police report number. Evidence fades faster than you’d believe — security footage can be overwritten in days.
STEP 3Report it — but don’t say you’re “fine”
Notify your insurer promptly and stick to facts. Don’t guess, don’t apologize, and don’t minimize your injuries — those words get used against people later.
STEP 4Talk to Chris before you accept anything
First offers are calculated to close your claim cheaply. Having Chris review yours costs nothing — and you stay in control of every decision.
And 55% of fatal crashes happen in broad daylight — not at night, when most people assume. Hillsborough County averages 68–74 crashes every single day, with the city’s own High Injury Network — 51 corridors including Dale Mabry and Malfunction Junction — carrying the bulk of the serious ones.
Four rules that shape every Tampa car accident claim.
No-fault insurance comes first — and it isn’t enough
Florida is a no-fault state: your own Personal Injury Protection (PIP) coverage pays first, regardless of who caused the crash — but it covers only a portion of medical bills and lost wages, up to $10,000. Serious injuries go far beyond it, which is when a claim against the at-fault driver matters.
The 50% rule
Under Florida’s modified comparative negligence law, you can recover if you were 50% or less at fault, with your recovery reduced by your share. More than 50%, and recovery is barred entirely — which is why the fight over fault percentages is often the whole case.
Two years. Not four.
Florida’s 2023 tort reform cut the deadline for negligence claims from four years to two years from the date of the crash. The evidence clock runs even faster.
Drunk drivers face more than liability
When the at-fault driver was intoxicated, Florida law allows punitive damages — and the caps that normally limit them do not apply to a drunk driver. If an impaired driver put you here, the law is firmly on your side.
Hillsborough County logged over 7,000 hit-and-run crashes in a single year — and 83% of the fatal ones happen at night. It’s exactly why uninsured-motorist coverage, and moving fast after a crash, matter more here than almost anywhere.
The real cost runs further than the first bills.
Economic damages are the countable losses: emergency care and every medical bill after it, rehabilitation and therapy, medications, lost wages — and the future ones: reduced earning capacity, long-term treatment, the care no one has priced in yet.
Non-economic damages are the losses without receipts: pain, anxiety and lost sleep, the hobbies and time with family the injury took, scarring and what it does to how you feel in a room.
Punitive damages apply when the at-fault driver’s conduct was egregious — drunk driving above all. They exist to punish and deter, and for intoxicated drivers Florida removes the usual caps.
This is why first offers fall short: they price the first category’s opening weeks and ignore the rest. Chris builds the case that answers the harder question — what will this injury actually take, over your whole recovery?
Three things most of Tampa doesn’t know.
Car accident questions, answered honestly.
Do I really need a lawyer for a car accident claim?
What does it cost to hire Chris?
How long do I have to file after a Tampa car accident?
What if I was partially at fault?
What if the other driver is uninsured — or drove off?
How much is my case worth?
Let’s take the first step
toward recovery.
Call, text, chat, or leave your number. From the moment you reach out, the burden starts shifting.