While California’s weather is generally favorable to boaters all year, spring and summer do see an increase in the number of boats actually out in the water. The warmer weather, school breaks, vacation time, and increasing daylight all give people more time to enjoy their hobby.
That also means an increase in the number of accidents on the water. California is already second in the nation (Florida is first) when it comes to the number of boating accidents per year — every year since 2011.
Some of that may be because those two states simply have more boaters in general — which then means more opportunity for accidents. It’s likely not a coincidence that, in 2015, the number one cause of accidents among recreational boaters in California is a collision with another recreational boater.
Statistically, there are some other major dangers that Californian’s need to watch out for while on the water:
Open motorboats and personal watercraft, like jet skis, are the two most danger-prone types of recreational vessels out on the water. Overall, the economic damage caused by the number of accidents among California’s boaters totaled more than $3 million in 2015, coming in behind only Florida and Rhode Island.
In order to stay safer and keep your passengers safer, there are three things that you can do:
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