Personal Injury Law – Slip and Fall Accidents
Personal Injury Law – Slip and Fall Accidents
Slip and fall injury accidents can occur at any time and at any place. A leading government journal indicates that millions of Americans will be injured this year in accidents in which they have slipped, tripped or fallen. Of these accident victims, 14,000 will die as a result of their injuries and several hundred thousand will suffer permanent disability. Most of these accidents could have been prevented by the use of reasonable care on the part of the victim or the occupier or owner of the premises in which the injury occurred. 70% of these accidents were the result of some defects on the premises which substantially contributed to the injury. Lack of ordinary and reasonable care, and/or maintenance, are common reasons for defects where injuries occur.
Regardless of who owns the property where the injury occurred, you have legal options. Regardless of how or where your injury occurred, you may be eligible for “no-fault” insurance benefits entitling you to recover medical expenses.
Our staff will carefully analyze the conditions of the premises where your accident occurred. If video footage is available, (often available in a commercial setting), that video footage can be used to support your case, as well as statements are taken from employees and other witnesses where the fall occurred. Outside specialists are commonly utilized to evaluate whether the premises where your injury occurred met “building codes” and whether the proper materials where utilized on floor surfaces, stairway surfaces, and other areas of pedestrian traffic. Failure to properly light premises can also be a cause of injury.
Slip and fall claims often require extensive negotiation with an insurance company. Thorough case preparation is an absolute necessity in handling a slip and fall case. It is very easy for an insurance company to claim that the victim “should have” handled him or herself in a different and more careful manner. However, it is very often the case that commercial property owners carefully design commercial premises to “distract and redirect” the pedestrian or patron’s attention away from a floor surface where a defect or unsafe condition is located for purposes of selling and marketing products. Knowing the exact activity of the injured party prior to a fall is imperative to properly understand and evaluate this type of claim.
As soon as possible take a photograph of the defective or unsafe premises as the property owner may change the unsafe condition. With certain exceptions, these changes are precluded from introduction as evidence against the property owner in the trial as the law and public policy encourages owners to correct unsafe or dangerous conditions. This rule applies even where the condition is clearly the result of negligence.
If you or a loved one has been the victim of a slip or fall injury, you will need representation from a professional slip and fall lawyer. Please contact our Law Office for a free consultation.
