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The phrase “slip and fall” is used by personal injury attorneys as an umbrella term for accidents that result in a person falling due to some hazard in the walkway of someone else’s property. These accidents can lead to serious and even life-threatening injuries like spinal, hip, and head trauma.
To recover from the expenses attached to these injuries, an attorney can represent you through a slip and fall accident claim.
The CEO Lawyer Personal Injury Law Firm is a trusted Dalton legal office that has been serving Georgians through slip and fall cases for years. Ali Awad, the founding and managing attorney of the firm, is dedicated to aiding Georgia communities through litigation and financial hardship.
Our associates are standing by to help you schedule an initial consultation. Call (706) 890-0000 or contact us online to schedule a free case review and discuss your options for obtaining compensation from all liable parties.
How Does a Dalton Slip and Fall Accident Attorney Protect The Claimant?
An attorney’s primary goal is to maximize your settlement as much as possible to aid in your financial recovery.
In doing so, they can take many of the most time-consuming and frustrating tasks of litigation off of your hands, including:
- Communication management: Your attorney is your legal representative, meaning they can speak on your behalf in conversations with other involved parties. Most correspondence relating to your accident can be referred to your lawyer, so you can avoid rehashing the details of your accident in claim conversations.
- Investigation proceedings: Before the insurance company takes on the financial responsibility for their policyholder’s actions, they’ll conduct a thorough investigation into the details of the event to ensure that they are liable. Policy information, specific accident details, and how the claimant reports can all impact the insurer’s decision to accept or deny responsibility.
- Legal guidance: You can lean on your lawyer for support when you have concerns about the process of litigation or are weighing your options while making a decision about important aspects like settlement offers.
- Negotiation: After the details of your accident have been assessed and confirmed, the process of securing a settlement begins with a negotiation. While the insurance company may attempt to undervalue the worth of your claim, an attorney can combat these attempts by guiding the conversation back to a realistic expectation.
- Preparation for a lawsuit, if necessary: The most traditional route of seeking compensation after a slip and fall accident is an insurance claim, but in some cases, these claims fall short in comprehensively accounting for all of the related expenses. Your attorney will help you understand your options, including a formal lawsuit.
Where are Slip and Fall Accidents Most Common?
A fall can happen anywhere, but in a place where you expect safe walking paths, the property owner may be breaching their duty of care to you as a visitor. Slip and fall accidents cause more than 2 million injuries every year.
Some common places where slip and fall accidents happen include:
- Residential setting: Slip and fall accidents are common specifically in joint living spaces such as those in hospitals or senior centers because of the slippery floors and consistent cleaning schedule that may leave surfaces slippery.
- Retail store: Spills or obstacles on the floor can cause someone to slip and fall while shopping in a retail environment. Supermarkets commonly face cases where a patron falls due to a wet floor with no warning, while department stores see more customers tripping over merchandise.
- Restaurants and bars: Dining environments can be another high-risk environment for slip and fall accidents because of the constant flow of food and drinks that are being transported throughout the establishment. Employees can track moisture or food scraps from their shoes onto the main dining floor, causing a patron to slip and fall.
- Public outdoor areas: A slip and fall that occurs outside can still be covered by a property owner’s insurance. Some sidewalks are especially dangerous, with uneven bumps and cracks in the leveling. In a poorly maintained parking garage, debris, uneven leveling, and other road hazards can lead to a fall. Most commonly, public pools can lead to slip and fall accidents.
- Construction sites: Construction sites are especially dangerous for accidents because of the equipment, hazardous material, and consistently moving parts on the scene. The construction industry made up over 40% of all slip and fall fatalities in 2020. An accident that affects a passing citizen and one that affects an employee will go through separate processes for financial recovery.
- Public transportation: Buses, trains, and other means of public transport tend to have narrower pathways to walk through, so debris in that walkway or a slippery step can lead to a serious fall. As these spaces are tightly packed, a fall can lead to extreme injuries like head trauma.
- Workplace: A fall in the workplace will result in a separate claim process altogether because an on-the-clock injury is handled by the company’s worker’s compensation Nonetheless, these injuries are common and oftentimes lead to injuries that result in missed work.
Is a Property Owner Liable for Every Injury on Their Property?
Generally, no. While a property owner has an established duty of care to create a safe space for all visitors, the visitor in question also has a responsibility to act with reason.
For example, if a shopper walking through a grocery store slips in the soda aisle, they may have a case for a personal injury claim. However, if there was a wet floor sign present at the time of the incident, the insurance company can deny a claim, saying that the property management provided enough warning to prompt caution.
The question of liability comes down to whether the property owner or occupant fulfilled all of their duties to protect the injured claimant. If they failed to keep the building maintained or to adequately warn visitors of hazards, then they could be held responsible for the costs of any resulting injuries, in most cases.
What Type of Evidence Is Necessary to Prove a Slip and Fall Accident?
The representing insurance company and your personal injury attorney will both utilize a wide variety of data to piece together the events of the accident, including:
- Evidence and documentation from the accident
- Witness statements
- Medical records
- Maintenance records
- Previous incidents
- Expert witness statements
What Should I Do After Experiencing A Slip and Fall Accident
The immediate moments following a slip and fall accident will be the most critical in securing evidence, so a fall victim should be diligent in covering all their bases.
After a slip and fall accident, the victim should:
- Tell the property owner: Even if you don’t think it is a serious situation at the moment, it is critical that you alert the property owner to your accident so they can address the hazard that caused the fall.
- Take pictures: Before the scene of the accident is cleaned up, take photos of the area where you fell. Make sure you include the factors that you think caused the accident. Any cracks in the floor or moisture in the area will be useful to have recorded.
- Talk to witnesses: If anyone else was around at the time of your accident, talk with them about writing a witness statement about what they saw. Even if no one saw the accident happen, witnesses can attest to the condition of the environment at the time of the fall.
- See a doctor: Some of the most essential evidence that the insurance representative will want to analyze is the doctor’s assessment of your condition. Even if you feel fine after an accident, seek immediate medical attention so a professional can ensure you have no unaddressed internal injuries.
- Document healing and continued care: You may require additional treatment after a slip and fall accident. The time it takes to heal will vary, but the victim of the fall should commit to a strict schedule of making updates about their physical condition. Photos and written accounts will both be accepted as evidence by your insurer and attorney.
What Should I Do if the Accident Was at a Friend or Family Member’s House?
A slip and fall accident can result in the burden of expenses like medical bills and the cost of missing work due to injury.
When you seek compensation for these damages, it is not through the direct pockets of the property owner. To financially recover from a slip and fall accident, the victim will file an insurance claim with the property owner’s homeowner’s insurance carrier.
The claim is between you and an insurance company, so your loved one won’t face any direct negative impact from you filing a damage claim.
If You Were Injured on Someone Else’s Property, Contact a Dalton Slip and Fall Accident Law Firm
A free consultation with a Dalton slip and fall accident attorney can help clarify any concerns or hesitations you have about the upcoming legal process. When you schedule a consultation with The CEO Lawyer Personal Injury Law Firm, an attorney will look over the details of your case to put together a draft plan for representation.
Call (706) 890-0000 or contact us online to schedule a free case review with our experienced Dalton slip and fall accident lawyers today.