Everyone has experienced an embarrassing fall at least once in their life. For some, the fall is not just embarrassing, but it is dangerous, and they are left with extremely painful injuries.
Private homes, public walkways, businesses, offices, and more may contain slip and fall hazards. In many cases, wet, slippery, or uneven surfaces are to blame for a fall, and you can hold a person liable for your injuries because they owned the property where your injuries happened. You can claim damages in your lawsuit related to your medical expenses, pain and suffering, lost income from missing work, and many other expenses you incurred. We need to gather as much evidence as possible to prove your claims. We will need evidence of your injuries and evidence proving the property owner negligently failed to maintain the premises.
If you were injured in a slip and fall accident on someone else’s property, that property owner can be held liable for your injuries. Our Broward County, FL slip and fall lawyers can help you file your claims and get compensation. Call The Carrion Law Firm at (954) 951-4828 for a free assessment of your case.
How Slip and Fall Accidents Happen in Broward County, FL
Slip and falls tend to happen very quickly, and victims are usually taken by surprise. People often associate slip and fall accidents with slippery walkways, but this is far from the only cause of these accidents. No matter what caused your slip and fall, our Broward County, FL slip and fall attorneys can help you hold the property owner accountable.
Wet or slippery surfaces are one of the predominant causes of slip and fall accidents. A spill or rainstorm might leave surfaces wet and slick. Someone coming back from the beach might leave a wet trail behind them. Someone invited onto the premises, or even someone passing by, might slip and be injured.
Uneven surfaces are serious tripping hazards that cause many slip and fall accidents. Older properties might have uneven floors from years of heavy use. Perhaps the stairs in a new home or office were improperly constructed, and the owner never bothered to have the hazard corrected.
How a slip and fall happens will vary based on the location. Certain premises might present unique hazards. You should speak with an attorney about your case as soon as possible to determine if a lawsuit can help you get compensation.
Premises Liability Lawsuits for Slip and Fall Accidents in Broward County, FL
People are sometimes frustrated after being injured in a slip and fall accident because they do not know who to blame. In many cases, the property owner is not even at the accident scene when the fall occurs. Property owners can be held liable simply because they own the premises where your accident happened.
Property owners typically owe a duty of care to guests and people they should reasonably expect to be on the premises. Social guests, customers, and even people who enter the premises by mistake may all have a premises liability case on their hands.
Property owners must repair known hazards and make reasonable inspections for unknown hazards. Exactly what kind of hazards are possible depends on the location. For example, a person expecting social guests must clean up spills on the floor that might cause someone to slip. A grocery store owner might have a duty to regularly check the store for spills that might happen over a normal day.
Inspections for unknown hazards must be reasonable. If a particular hazard was beyond any reasonable inspection and could not have been identified by the property owner ahead of time, the property owner might not be liable.
Even trespassers can sue property owners if the property owners knew or reasonably should have known that trespassers might enter their property. For example, if a property owner knows that hikers on a nearby nature often enter their property by mistake, they owe a duty of care to make their property safe for those trespassers. Unknown trespassers are owed no duty of care.
Damages You Can Claim After a Slip and Fall Accident in Broward County, FL
Do not underestimate the effect a slip and fall accident can have on your life. In slip and fall accidents, people often suffer debilitating injuries that require expensive medical treatment. They must also take time off work to recover, thus losing income. The fall itself may be embarrassing, and you can sue for humiliation and your pain and suffering.
Medical bills can be extremely expensive. A slip and fall may lead to serious injuries like brain damage, neck injuries, spinal cord damage, broken bones, lacerations, bruising, and more. Medical bills can include doctor visits, x-rays, medications, surgery, physical therapy, and any other treatments you need. You can claim all the money you have spent on medical treatment so far in addition to expected future medical costs.
Slip and fall injuries are particularly painful, and you can claim damages for your mental and physical pain and suffering. Establishing these damages can be challenging since they are not connected to actual monetary values. Our Broward County, FL slip and fall lawyers can help you calculate these damages by assessing their impact on your daily life.
Slip and falls are not only painful, but they can be embarrassing. If your fall occurred in a public place where others saw you, you might feel humiliated. The humiliation may be even worse if you fell in front of peers like classmates or coworkers who you must continue to see every day after your accident. Humiliation can also be compensated, similar to pain and suffering.
Evidence for Broward County, FL Slip and Fall Accidents
To get compensation for your slip and fall injuries and hold the property owner liable, we need to gather evidence supporting your claims. Evidence may be unique to each case, and knowing what to look for can be difficult. Our Broward County, FL slip and fall lawyers have experience gathering and assessing evidence to use in these situations.
Photos and videos recorded immediately after your slip and fall may shed light on the conditions of the premises. This is important because after you are taken to receive medical attention, the property owner might repair or remove any evidence of the hazard from their property. Photos and videos can help preserve the scene.
If your accident occurred in a store or business, we can review the property owner’s business records. These records may inform us how often the premises were being maintained, the most recent repairs made, and whether reasonable inspections were conducted.
Contact Our Broward County Slip and Fall Attorneys for Help
If you were injured in a slip and fall accident, your injuries might be severe, and your damages too much to handle alone. Our Broward County, FL slip and fall attorneys can help you get compensation and get your life back. Call The Carrion Law Firm at (954) 951-4828 for a free case review.