Florida · Injured in a crash

Injured in a Car Accident in Stuart?

A rear-end on US 1 at Monterey Road in the evening rush, a rollover at Federal Highway and Colorado Avenue, a pileup on I-95 near the Kanner Highway exit. If you were just in a crash in Stuart, or nearby in Palm City, Jensen Beach, Hobe Sound, Port Salerno or anywhere else in Martin County, and you are trying to figure out what to do next, this page is the short version, with the Stuart-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. Stuart has a full hospital inside the city. Cleveland Clinic Martin North Hospital at 200 SE Hospital Avenue, just off US 1 near the Roosevelt Bridge, has a 24-hour emergency department, and Cleveland Clinic Martin South on the south end of town covers Port Salerno and Hobe Sound. Neither is a designated trauma center, so the most seriously injured crash victims from Martin County are usually flown or driven north to HCA Florida Lawnwood Hospital in Fort Pierce, the Level II trauma center that serves the Treasure Coast, or south to St. Mary's Medical Center in West Palm Beach, a Level I center. 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 Stuart

Inside city limits, the Stuart Police Department responds to crashes, and its records unit handles crash report requests during business hours. The city itself is small, and most of what people think of as Stuart is actually unincorporated Martin County. Palm City, Jensen Beach, Hobe Sound, Port Salerno, Rio and the neighborhoods west of the Turnpike are all covered by the Martin County Sheriff's Office, so a crash on the far side of the St. Lucie River, south of the Salerno Road area or out on Kanner Highway past the city line usually belongs to the Sheriff. Sewall's Point has its own small police department. On I-95 and Florida's Turnpike it is usually the Florida Highway Patrol, and the Patrol investigates many of the serious and fatal crashes in the county. 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 Stuart crashes happen

The stretches that come up most: US 1, which is Federal Highway, from the Roosevelt Bridge south through downtown, Colorado Avenue, Monterey Road and Indian Street to Salerno Road and Cove Road, a long line of signals, plazas and left turns where rear-ends and T-bones happen every day, Kanner Highway, which is State Road 76, from US 1 west past Monterey Road and Indian Street to the I-95 interchange and on toward Indiantown, Monterey Road, which is State Road 714, from US 1 west across the railroad crossing to Palm City and the Turnpike, where the crossing has long been a trouble spot, SE Ocean Boulevard, which is State Road A1A, from downtown east past the hospital and the shopping centers toward Sewall's Point and Hutchinson Island, where pedestrians have been struck, Indian Street, Martin Downs Boulevard and Mapp Road in Palm City, Jensen Beach Boulevard and Savannah Road to the north, Bridge Road and Dixie Highway in Hobe Sound, and the I-95 ramps at Kanner Highway, Martin Highway and Bridge Road. The US 1 and Britt Road intersection just north of the city was once called "dysfunction junction" by local merchants and has been rebuilt with new turn lanes and signals. The crashes on US 1 and Kanner are rear-ends at the lights and left turns across traffic into a plaza, while on I-95 and the Turnpike they are high speed with several vehicles. Photos of the intersection, the signals, the sight lines 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.