The embarrassed way that people react to a slip-and-fall often indicates that they blame themselves for stumbling and suffering harm. However, people who fall in public areas generally encounter something that puts them at risk before slipping or tripping and falling. Particularly if a slip-and-fall leads to a head injury or a broken bone, the injury victim might have significant expenses to cover; if their fall was not their fault – or was only partially their fault – they should not bear the financial burden related to their situation when others should rightfully be paying for their care.
Sometimes, those who slip and fall in public locations can take legal action against a business or property owner. When might a company be responsible for someone slipping, falling and getting hurt?
When negligence contributes to the situation
Proper facility maintenance can eliminate the majority of hazards that would cause a slip-and-fall. People who fall because of unsafe personal habits, like running down the aisles at a grocery store, may not be able to take legal action against a property owner or business. However, those who encounter dangerous facilities that cause them to fall may have grounds for a premises liability lawsuit. Failing to maintain the floors in good condition could be a form of property owner negligence. Improper
Understaffing is also a common form of business negligence. Companies often don’t have enough workers on hand to take care of customers and maintain their facilities, so a spill or other issue goes unattended. Provided the person who falls can show that it was a preventable risk factor at the property that caused their fall and that a reasonable person would recognize the risk, they may have grounds to hold the business or property owner accountable.
Filing a premises liability lawsuit can help to compensate people who get injured while visiting a store or someone else’s property. Although not all public slip or trip scenarios are legally actionable, far more are than most people realize.