Florida · Injured in a crash

Injured in a Car Accident in Lauderhill?

A rear-end on Oakland Park Boulevard at State Road 7, a T-bone at Sunrise Boulevard and Inverrary, a pileup on Florida's Turnpike at the Commercial Boulevard ramps in the evening rush. If you were just in a crash in Lauderhill, or next door in Tamarac or Sunrise, and you are trying to figure out what to do next, this page is the short version, with the Lauderhill-specific details, and links to the full guides.

It costs nothing to find out

If you are reading this and thinking you cannot afford a lawyer, read this part first. Personal injury lawyers do not charge you to talk, do not charge by the hour, and do not charge anything unless they recover money for you. The fee comes out of the recovery at the end, never out of your pocket. The first conversation is free. Call Clyne is free too: we ask you a few questions and connect you with a licensed Florida attorney who looks at your case at no cost. Nobody will ask you for money. Read How Much Does a Car Accident Lawyer Cost.

First, the two things that matter most in Florida

See a doctor within 14 days. Florida is a no-fault state, and your own policy's Personal Injury Protection pays your first medical bills no matter who caused the crash, but only if you get treatment within 14 days. Florida Medical Center at 5000 West Oakland Park Boulevard, just east of the Lauderhill line in Lauderdale Lakes, has a 24-hour emergency room and is the closest hospital for most of the city. Lauderhill does not have a trauma center of its own. The county's Level I trauma center is Broward Health Medical Center at 1600 South Andrews Avenue in Fort Lauderdale, so the most serious crashes in Lauderhill, Tamarac and Sunrise are usually taken downtown. Urgent care or your own doctor counts too. Read the 14-day rule guide.

Do not give the other driver's insurer a recorded statement. They will call fast and sound friendly. You are not required to talk to them. Read what to say when they call.

Getting your crash report in Lauderhill

Inside city limits, the Lauderhill Police Department responds to crashes. Its headquarters are at 6279 West Oakland Park Boulevard, and its records management unit takes report requests in person, by phone and by email. Lauderhill's borders are irregular, and a crash on the same road a few blocks away can fall to a different agency: Tamarac and Lauderdale Lakes are policed by the Broward Sheriff's Office, Sunrise has its own police department, and Plantation does too. On Florida's Turnpike it is the Florida Highway Patrol. Ask the officer at the scene which agency wrote the report and get the report number.

Florida crash reports are available online through the state's Florida Crash Portal, usually within about ten days, and from the responding agency's records unit. For the first 60 days the report is only available to the people involved, their insurers and their lawyers, so have your license and the report number ready.

Roads where Lauderhill crashes happen

The stretches that come up most: Oakland Park Boulevard from the Turnpike east through Inverrary Boulevard and State Road 7 (US-441), which is the main road across the city and carries the plaza traffic, the bus traffic and the Turnpike overflow all at once, State Road 7 between Commercial Boulevard and Sunrise Boulevard, Sunrise Boulevard from the Turnpike east to State Road 7, Commercial Boulevard at the Turnpike and at State Road 7, Inverrary Boulevard, Northwest 19th Street, and the Turnpike interchanges at Oakland Park, Sunrise and Commercial, where drivers come off the highway straight into heavy signal traffic. These are some of the busiest and oldest arterials in Broward County, six and eight lanes wide with bus stops, crosswalks and plaza driveways every block, and the crashes are rear-ends at the lights, left turns across oncoming traffic, drivers pulling out of shopping center entrances, and pedestrians and cyclists crossing mid-block. Photos of the intersection, the signals and the lane markings matter, because these crashes often turn into arguments about who had the light or who changed lanes.

What to do in the first 48 hours

• Call 911 and get a report, even for a "small" crash.
• Photograph both cars, both licenses, both insurance cards, and the scene.
• See a doctor within 14 days. Sooner is better.
• Report the crash to your own insurer. Facts only.
• Do not accept a quick check or sign anything from the other driver's insurer.
• Keep every bill, receipt and visit summary.

The full step-by-step list is in What to Do After a Car Accident in Florida.

Know the Florida clock

For most car accident injury claims in Florida you have two years from the date of the crash to file a lawsuit, and if you are found more than half at fault you recover nothing. Both changed in 2023. Details in How Long Do You Have to File in Florida.

When to talk to a lawyer

Not every fender bender needs one. Talk to a lawyer when you were injured and are still treating after a week or two, when the other driver was uninsured or fled, when fault is being disputed, or when you missed work. Florida personal injury lawyers work on contingency, which means no fee unless they recover money for you, and the first conversation is free. More in Do I Need a Lawyer If It Wasn't My Fault and How Much Does a Car Accident Lawyer Cost.

More Florida towns and the full set of guides: Car accidents in Florida.

Call Clyne is a lawyer referral service, not a law firm. Stephen Clyne is not an attorney. This article is general information, not legal advice, and laws change. Talk to a licensed Florida attorney about your situation.