Hudson is the north end of the US-19 corridor, a community of about 13,000 people with a median age near 60, a working waterfront, and the busiest hospital emergency room in Pasco County sitting right on its edge. Hudson drivers share US-19 with everyone headed to Spring Hill and Hernando County, and share SR-52 with everyone headed east toward the Suncoast Parkway.
Conde-Huggins Accident Injury Lawyers is on Ridge Road in Port Richey, a few miles south on US-19. We are the closest injury law office to Hudson, we are a few minutes from HCA Florida Bayonet Point Hospital, and we meet clients in the hospital or at home. The consultation is free. Call (240) 421-5511.
Hudson's roads and where people get hurt
US-19. Hudson's main street is also the road a 2024 ConsumerAffairs study called the deadliest segment in Florida. The Pasco stretch runs from the Pinellas line to the Hernando line, and Hudson is the last several miles of it. FDOT's $2.6 million LED lighting retrofit of US-19 was designed to run from the Pinellas line north to New York Avenue in Hudson, so the lit portion ends inside Hudson. Drivers pulling out of the plazas, mobile home communities and side streets along US-19 at 55 mph are a daily source of T-bone and rear-end crashes.
SR-52. State Road 52 begins at US-19 in Bayonet Point, on Hudson's southern edge, and runs east past Little Road, Moon Lake Road and the Suncoast Parkway. It was widened to six lanes between Moon Lake Road and the Suncoast in 2007, and the speeds on that section are highway speeds. SR-52 near Land O' Lakes is one of the corridors the Pasco MPO has flagged for clustered fatalities.
Little Road and Hudson Avenue. Little Road (CR-1) carries traffic from Hudson south through Bayonet Point, Port Richey and New Port Richey to Trinity. Hudson Avenue connects US-19 to the residential areas and schools east of the highway. Both are two-lane in places and carry far more traffic than they did a decade ago.
Hudson Beach and the waterfront. The streets leading to Hudson Beach and the Gulf-side canals are low speed but crowded with pedestrians, cyclists and golf carts, especially on weekends and in season.
FHP, the Sheriff, and what your Hudson crash report will say
Hudson has no city police. The Florida Highway Patrol, Troop C, handles most crash investigations in unincorporated Pasco, and the Pasco Sheriff's Office handles the rest. Which one showed up affects your case more than you might expect, because the Sheriff's Office generally does not complete long-form crash reports.
A long-form FHP report includes a diagram, a narrative and witness information. A short form from a deputy is often a page of names and insurance details. When the report is thin, the other driver's insurer fills in the blanks in its own favor. We counter that by going to the scene, photographing sight lines and skid marks, pulling 911 audio, canvassing US-19 businesses for video, and interviewing witnesses while they still remember. If you were hurt in Hudson, call (240) 421-5511 before that evidence is gone.
Bayonet Point hospital and the 14-day rule
HCA Florida Bayonet Point Hospital, 14000 Fivay Road, Hudson 34667, is the only Level II trauma center in Pasco County and the destination for the county's most serious crash injuries. It is also a few minutes from our office. For less severe injuries, Morton Plant North Bay Hospital in New Port Richey is the next closest emergency room.
Florida's no-fault law pays your PIP medical benefits only if you receive initial care within 14 days of the crash. For many Hudson residents the first visit is Bayonet Point's ER, which satisfies the rule. If you went home and planned to see your doctor later, do not let the two-week window close. The full $10,000 PIP benefit is available only when a physician, physician assistant or nurse practitioner finds an emergency medical condition; otherwise the medical benefit stops at $2,500.
What Florida law means for your Hudson claim
Two years to file. Fla. Stat. § 95.11(5)(a) sets a two-year limit on negligence claims arising after March 24, 2023. Wrongful death claims are also two years under § 95.11(5)(e). Medical bills and recorded statements keep flowing long after the crash, and the deadline arrives faster than people expect.
Comparative fault. Florida's 51 percent bar under Fla. Stat. § 768.81(6) means you recover nothing if a jury would find you more than half responsible. Many US-19 crashes involve a driver pulling out from a side street and a driver speeding on the highway. Who gets the larger share of blame decides the case. We build the evidence that supports your version.
The permanent-injury threshold. To recover pain and suffering from the driver who hit you, Fla. Stat. § 627.737(2) requires a permanent injury within a reasonable degree of medical probability, significant permanent scarring, significant permanent loss of an important bodily function, or death. Older Hudson residents often have prior conditions that a crash aggravates. An aggravation of a pre-existing condition can still meet the threshold, but it has to be documented properly.
UM/UIM coverage. Florida does not require bodily injury liability insurance on most private vehicles. If the driver who hit you on US-19 has no BI coverage, your own uninsured/underinsured motorist policy under Fla. Stat. § 627.727 is usually what pays. Many retirees carry only the state minimums to save money and do not learn what that means until after a crash. Bring us your policy and we will tell you what you have.
Hudson cases we handle
- Car accidents on US-19, SR-52, Little Road and Hudson Avenue.
- Motorcycle accidents. Hudson's US-19 and SR-52 draw riders year-round, and riders have no PIP.
- Truck accidents involving commercial trucks using US-19 and SR-52 to reach the Suncoast Parkway.
- Pedestrian accidents on the unlit sections of US-19 and near the mobile home communities along it.
- Wrongful death claims for families, including the specific rules on who may recover under Fla. Stat. § 768.21.
- Falls and other injuries at stores, restaurants and senior communities.
Every Hudson case is handled by Clementine Conde, who has practiced in Pasco courts since 1992. Hudson cases that go to suit are filed at the West Pasco Judicial Center on Little Road in New Port Richey. We also serve neighboring Bayonet Point and Port Richey.
Talk to a Port Richey injury lawyer about your Hudson crash today
If you are reading this from a bed at Bayonet Point, we can be there before visiting hours end. If you are home in Hudson and cannot drive, we will come to your kitchen table. The consultation is free, there is no attorney's fee unless we recover for you, we answer 24 hours a day, and staff members speak Spanish. Call (240) 421-5511 or reach us online.
Free consultation, no attorney's fee unless we win. We meet Hudson clients at home, in the hospital, or at our office on Ridge Road. (240) 421-5511
Cases we handle in Hudson
Dedicated pages for the most common claims we see in Hudson:
Questions people ask us about hudson car accident cases
Who investigates car accidents in Hudson?
Hudson is unincorporated, so there is no city police department. Crashes are investigated by the Florida Highway Patrol, Troop C, which handles most Pasco County crash investigations, or by the Pasco Sheriff's Office. FHP generally works the serious crashes on US-19 and SR-52. Your exchange slip from the scene names the agency and report number.
How do I get a crash report from FHP for a Hudson accident?
Buy it through the Florida Crash Portal at services.flhsmv.gov for $10 plus a $2 convenience fee. Reports can take up to 10 days to be available, and the download link is emailed and expires in 48 hours. For 60 days after filing, only involved parties, their attorneys and insurers may obtain it (Fla. Stat. § 316.066(2)). If a deputy responded, the Pasco Sheriff's Office Public Records Unit in Land O' Lakes handles requests.
I was treated at Bayonet Point after my crash. Does that help my case?
Yes. A same-day emergency room visit satisfies Florida's 14-day PIP treatment rule and documents your injuries from the start. If a physician there diagnosed an emergency medical condition, you have access to the full $10,000 in PIP medical benefits rather than the $2,500 cap. Bring your discharge papers to your consultation; we will handle the hospital's billing and lien questions.
Can a retiree in Hudson recover lost income after a crash?
PIP's disability benefit replaces 60 percent of lost gross income, which does not help someone who is retired. But many Hudson residents work part time, and lost wages are only one part of a claim. Medical bills, future care, loss of the ability to do things you did before, and pain and suffering (if the permanent-injury threshold in Fla. Stat. § 627.737 is met) are all recoverable from the at-fault driver or your UM coverage.
How long do I have to file a claim for a Hudson car accident?
Two years from the date of the crash for most negligence claims under Fla. Stat. § 95.11(5)(a). Wrongful death claims also have a two-year limit. Crashes before March 24, 2023 keep the old four-year period. Waiting also lets evidence disappear, so call sooner rather than later.