Have You Been Injured in A Slip and Fall Accident? Know Your Rights and How to Protect Them:
Slip and fall accidents occur every day. While many are minor and do not cause lasting injury, some can be severe and cause major musculoskeletal or other injuries that can have permanent repercussions on a person’s life. While some slip and fall accidents are caused by simple human error such as misjudging the depth of a step or curve other times they can be because of another person’s negligence or failure to maintain a seated business working environment. When your slip and fall accident is caused by another person’s negligence or failure you may be able to recover from your injuries.
[table-of-content]
What Are Some Common Causes of Slip and Fall Accidents?
Failure to clean up a spill from the floor particularly in a restaurant or grocery store.- Failure to properly clean and maintain sidewalks, driveways, and entrances to a business particularly in climates and circumstances in which ice and snow are present
- Negligent maintenance or repair of a stairwell to ensure that both the stairs and handrail are safe to use
- Not giving proper notice to patrons, the general public, and/or employees that slippery conditions may be present on the floor such as failure to put out a wet floor sign after mopping the floor
Common Injuries That Can Occur After a Slip and Fall Accident
Many slip and fall accidents are minor and do not result in any permanent or lasting damage. However, if a slip and fall accident is more serious it can cause a person to be out of work, lose income, and potentially cause lasting or permanent harm the damages a person for the rest of their life. Some common examples of these types of injuries include:
- fractured or broken bones
- Torn muscles or ligaments can lead to long-term or permanent weakness or reduced use of a person’s legs or arms
- Knee injuries can result in chronic pain, issues walking, bending, or lifting objects from the floor and may in some cases require knee replacement surgery which causes added expense and recovery time
- Cuts, bruises, and abrasions due to hitting the ground
- concussions or other traumatic brain injuries if a person falls and hits their head. Even a mild concussion can have long-term effects that impact a person’s memory and concentration and may keep them out of work for a period of time
Who Can Be Held Responsible for Slip and Fall Accidents?
The parties that can be held responsible for a slip and fall accident vary depending on the circumstances of your case.
The Employees and Owners of a Business:
If you are dealing with a restaurant, grocery store, movie theater, or department store, the employees, as well as the business, may be held responsible for failing to clean up a slippery substance on the floor or to properly warn people that the floor is slick and to use caution such as posting a notice or using a wet floor sign. In these cases, the actual owner of the building may or may not be held liable depending on whether the company owns the building or is renting the space. If renting the building that they are in the landlord may or may not be held responsible for the slip and fall occurring depending on whether they had notice of the condition. Most failure to clean up a slippery substance claims will not involve the landlord if the business is renting the building because the landlord did not have notice of the condition.
Employees and the owners of the business can also be held liable for dangerous conditions that cause slip and fall accidents such as broken stairways if they failed to properly notify the landlord of the condition and/or failed to properly post a notice for patrons or the public about the condition.
Landlords or Owners of the Building
Landlords or owners of the building can be held responsible for a slip and fall accident if they knew about a dangerous condition in the building and did not properly repair the condition. The landlord or owner of the building can also be held responsible if they were notified of the condition such as a broken stairwell usually when a person complains about the condition but failed to make the necessary repairs to resolve the issue.
How Do You Prove a Slip and Fall Case?
Like with many other negligence cases in order to prove a slip and fall case you must prove that the employees, business, and/or owner of the building owed you a duty of care, breached that duty of care, that they are negligence was the main cause of your accident and that you suffered damages due to that accident.
A good example of this is the classic slippery substance in a grocery store. When you operate a store that is open to the public you have a general duty of care to ensure that the premises are kept safe and free from hazards such as spills on the floor. By failing to clean up a slippery substance that gets spilled on the floor the employees and/or the business owner breached that duty of care, because you slipped and fell in the slippery substance it is the main cause of your accident and if you are required to seek medical attention were out of work for a period of time those are damages which are recoverable due to the accident.
What Types of Damages Are Recoverable?
Some common types of damages that are recoverable in slip and fall accidents are:
- Medical bills: if you have to seek medical attention at an ER, urgent care, or even your primary care physician as a result of the accident use expenses are recoverable by a personal injury lawyer. If you have to undergo surgery or other corrective methods due to your injury these costs are also recoverable.
- Lost wages: if you are out of work for a period of time due to your accident and therefore lose income you can sue for and often recover that income as part of your lawsuit
- Lost Earning Potential: if your injuries are severe enough and impact your ability to work in the industry you are in or at all these damages can be calculated and presented to a jury by an experienced personal injury lawyer and you can receive compensation for this lost potential income
How Long Do You Have to File a Claim?
The statute of limitations governs how long a person has to file a personal injury claim. In New York depending on the circumstances, you can have anywhere from 90 days to 3 years to file a slip and fall claim. It is therefore imperative that you speak to a slip and fall attorney as soon as possible after the accident so that you can understand your rights and ensure that they are protected.
Contact us for a free consultation. Call (888) 998-7165 or tell us about your case using our online form above. We will review your case for free.
