Florida Slip & Fall Lawyers

Were You Injured Due to Unsafe Conditions on Someone Else’s Property?

Some people are clumsy—and there is nothing wrong with that! However, there is a huge difference between being clumsy and being injured due to someone else’s negligence. Slip and falls (sometimes referred to as trip and falls) lead to terrible injuries. When you fall, you need someone who is going to help you up and stand next to you during the ensuing legal fight. While some slip and fall accidents can be relatively easily resolved in settlement negotiations, many others become drawn-out battles with insurance companies looking to pinch pennies.

When you hire The Dellutri Law Group, PA, you will not be standing alone. Our entire team, including our Florida slip and fall lawyers, will be with you every step of the way. Keep reading to learn more about what to do after a slip, trip, or fall and to determine whether you have a potential claim. If you are ready to discuss your situation with an experienced personal injury lawyer at no cost to you, get in touch with The Dellutri Law Group, PA today.

Call (800) 391-4337 or contact us online to get started.

What to Do If You Slip & Fall on Someone Else’s Property

Here is a helpful checklist of dos and don’ts should you ever find yourself in a slip and fall situation:

• DON’T just jump up and pretend like everything is A-okay. We get it—falling is embarrassing and jumping right up is usually the first thing we want to do when we fall in front of someone. However, first make sure you are okay to move. We don’t want you jumping up on a sprained ankle or a broken tailbone and making the injuries even worse. If you have someone with you, have them take a few quick pictures before they help you up to preserve evidence.
• DO take lots of pictures of the scene. Document whatever condition caused you to fall, such as liquid on the ground, spilled merchandise, uneven flooring, cracked floors, faulty steps, etc.
• DO take some pictures of any immediate injuries. Continue to take those pictures as the bruising or swelling increases, as well as when they start to subside.
• DO report the incident to the store manager. Don’t let them intimidate you or tell you that you don’t need to file a report. File the report and make a copy (or take a picture of it).
• DO record the names and phone numbers of witnesses. Be sure to write down the names, phone numbers, and addresses of anyone who witnesses your fall. If the fall occurred at a business, this includes employees who witnessed the fall or any managers or supervisors who spoke to you after the fall.
• DO seek the appropriate medical treatment. If your injuries are bad enough to warrant an ambulance ride, by all means, don’t feel guilty about that. If you don’t seek treatment via ambulance, please go get checked out on your own accord by a medical professional and have them document all of your injuries.
• DO save the clothes and shoes you were wearing. Don’t wash them! Instead, put them in a Ziplock bag as soon as you get home. Believe it or not, often times, these pieces of clothing and shoes can be used as evidence.
• DO retain all receipts. Make sure to keep any documents that will show the time and date of your fall.
• DO call an experienced slip and fall attorney in Florida to help you.

Since you are here reading this information, you may have already been involved in a slip and fall accident. If so, we are so sorry! We are ready to help you with your case; contact us today!

Here are 4 things that a slip and fall injury victim must prove!

Who Is Liable for Slip & Fall Accidents?

Slip and fall accidents fall under a type of personal injury claim known as premises liability. Premises liability cases involve people who are injured due to unsafe conditions on someone else’s property. This might be a public property, such as a grocery store or office building, or it might be a private residence. In either case, property owners have a responsibility to make sure their stores, buildings, and homes are reasonably safe for anyone who lawfully enters the property. If a property owner fails to properly address a dangerous condition—such as spilled liquids, crumbling stairs, or torn carpeting—people can be seriously injured. And, injured individuals have the right to sue negligent property owners for damages, such as medical bills, lost wages, and pain and suffering.

Here are the elements you must prove to succeed in a slip-and-fall claim in Florida:

Duty of Care

The owner of any premises owes a duty of care to anyone who visits their property. The duty of care is the responsibility an owner has to ensure that their property is free from hazardous conditions that could potentially cause injury (i.e., keep the floors safe).

In Court, you must be able to prove that the defending party did, in fact, have a duty of care to uphold. Since each state has its own governing laws regarding the level of care that is owned, consulting with an attorney will help you determine who in your situation is the liable party.

Breach of the Duty of Care

Once you’ve determined who the responsible party is (i.e. the person required to maintain the property), you must prove that they breached their duty of care. To prove a breach of duty, you must demonstrate that the responsible party failed to maintain or to prevent a hazardous situation in some way. For example, if you are shopping in a grocery store, they have a duty to keep the aisles clean and dry to protect shoppers. In the case of a broken jar in one of the aisles – if the store staff neglects to clean the spill, thereby leaving a slippery surface for a reasonable amount of time, it can be expected that someone will fall and hurt themselves. If you fall, you would be able to prove that they failed to uphold their duty of care – making them liable for your injury.

Causation

Now that you’ve proven duty of care and the breach of that duty, you must also be able to demonstrate that your injury directly resulted from the breach of duty. Use the “But For” test. But for the breach of duty, would you not have been injured? If you can answer this question in the affirmative, you are halfway there. You must also prove that it was reasonably foreseeable that if they did breach their duty, someone could be injured. This is where it begins to get messy.

There are several defenses that an owner may have including:

• Contributory Negligence: If you, the injured party, could be held partially or totally responsible for your fall resulting in your injuries – the property owner may not be found liable.
• Emergency Situations: If there was an active emergency surrounding your injuries, such as a fire or a police chase – the property owner may not be liable to you.
• Assumption of Risk: If you knew that there were risks involved, for example, seeing a hazardous situation on the aisle in the store and choosing to walk into it, you may have “assumed the risk” associated with your actions and the property owner could be found not liable for your accident.
• Defenses vary from State to State

Damages

Lastly, you must also be able to prove in court that you suffered actual damages from the slip and fall. These damages can be proven with medical testimony from a qualified doctor or medical expert. If you had medical expenses or missed days of work resulting in lost wages, be sure to keep a record of it. Your attorney should be calculating all of your economic and non-economic damages from day one including, but not limited to, lost wages, prescriptions, etc.

If

That’s where we come in. At The Dellutri Law Group, PA, we are ready to take on at-fault people/parties and seek the fair recovery and justice you deserve. When you hire us, you get our entire firm working on your behalf. If you’re wondering if you’ve found the right law firm for you, we encourage you to read what makes The Dellutri Law Group, PA different and what will happen when you hire us.

To get started with a free consultations, please call our office at (800) 391-4337 now.

Writing a review is not something that I usually do. But, regarding the Dellutri Law Group—especially Carmen—I felt a need. I have used this group twice now and If you can understand "they are old school!" You get to speak with the person who you have retained. I cannot tell you how relaxed I felt when I would get an update or fact info call from Carmen himself. I felt fully protected and informed throughout the procedure. At a time when we all need comfort and understanding this firm is where to go. I fully trusted Carmen and his group without any doubt. The results I received were exactly as predicted and I am very thankful to have found these people. I hope you share a similar experience!" - M.B. (Google Review)