Although people sometimes balk at the idea of suing over slip and fall injuries. The truth is, these accidents can be very serious. You could be badly injured and suffer long-term complications, and the person who owns the premises where you fell should be held responsible.
Slip and falls are common in the wintertime on icy walkways that have not been shoveled, but they can occur almost anywhere. Spills in the grocery store or uneven stairs in your apartment building might lead to a bad fall. Slip and fall cases might be worth a lot of financial compensation, depending on your injuries. Before you can get any compensation, we need to present solid evidence that your accident happened because the owner of the property neglected to maintain it safely. Property owners might be liable because they owe a duty of care and safety to invited guests and some uninvited but reasonably anticipated visitors.
At The Carrion Law Firm, our slip and fall attorneys are available to schedule a free review of your claims if you call us at (631) 910-7493.
How Slip and Fall Injuries Can Occur Around Oyster Bay
People who take legal action for slips and falls often get an unfair reputation for being litigious or using a lawsuit for a quick money-grab. This is not only untrue but very unfair. Victims are often badly hurt, unable to return to work, and left with serious medical debt they cannot afford.
The icy walkway scenario is arguably the most commonly used example of a falling accident. You might be walking on someone’s property during the winter and slip because they did not shovel the snow and ice. This is common when walking up to a neighbor’s home or through an icy parking lot while running errands. Property owners should remove the ice if they know or expect they have visitors. If they do not, they might be responsible for injuries.
Spills are another major concern in slipping and falling cases. Spills in restaurants, grocery stores, malls, or other places with lots of foot traffic create a very high risk of accidents and injuries. Not only are property or business owners responsible for cleaning up the spill, but they should adequately warn guests about the wet floor (i.e., a wet floor sign).
Structural issues might also lead to slip and fall injuries. Uneven or unsafe floors, stairs, and walkways are serious tripping hazards. If someone falls on some stairs, they might tumble all the way down the stairwell, becoming severely injured.
What Are Oyster Bay Slip and Fall Cases Worth?
Before most cases begin, plaintiffs want to know how much their case is worth. This is usually because people want to know if their damages are worth suing over or if they are better off just forgetting the whole thing. While the value of your damages varies based on the unique circumstances of your case, they might be quite significant.
Our slip and fall attorneys must consider economic and non-economic losses to estimate how much financial compensation is on the line. Economic losses are all the ways the accident costs you money. Medical bills are often a large portion of economic injuries, but plaintiffs might also claim lost income if they are so badly hurt that they cannot return to work. If you damage any personal belongings in the fall (e.g., you fall on your laptop or break something expensive), you may also claim that.
Your non-economic damages are an important variable in our estimation of how much your case is worth. These injuries did not cost money, but they still deserve financial compensation for the toll they took on your body and mind. Physical pain and emotional suffering or trauma are common examples of non-economic injuries.
While people sometimes assume there could not possibly be much emotional suffering in these accidents, the truth is that these experiences can be traumatic. Your injuries might be severe, leaving you with long-term complications, and you are faced with a new life with new injuries that are not going anywhere anytime soon. Ultimately, the value of non-economic damages is up to the jury, but we can work to convince them that your damages are significant and worthy of valuable compensation.
Who is Responsible for a Slip and Fall Accident in Oyster Bay?
In many slip and fall accidents, the property owner is liable for the incident and your damages. For example, if you slip and fall on your neighbor’s icy front steps, your neighbor might be liable for your damages., Similarly, if you slipped and fell on your apartment building’s uneven stairs, the landlord might be held liable.
The situation becomes a bit tricker when businesses and retail spaces are involved. In many cases, the business operating in the location where you fell does not own it. Instead, they rent or lease the space from the owner. In such a situation, the business could be responsible even though they do not own the space because they are responsible for maintaining it. However, there might be structural or infrastructure issues that are ultimately the owner’s responsibility. You should talk to an attorney to figure out who is liable in your case.
Defendants are usually liable to guests who are directly invited onto the premises or those who are not invited but should be expected. For example, a homeowner owes a duty of care to social guests invited for a party. A store owner might be liable to customers even though customers are not explicitly invited onto the property.
Property owners are normally not liable for injuries to unknown trespassers. For example, a burglar who breaks into your home and slips on your stairs likely has no valid legal claim against you. However, known trespassers might be owed a duty of care. A known trespasser might be children who walk to the bus stop every morning by cutting through your backyard. Even though they are technically trespassing, you might be liable for their injuries if you know about their morning routine and do nothing to stop it.
Call Our Oyster Bay Slip and Fall Attorneys for Legal Support Now
Our slip and fall attorneys at The Carrion Law Firm are available to schedule a free evaluation of your case if you call us at (631) 910-7493.