Slip and fall accidents are all too common in Fort Lauderdale, and they occur on private, public, and commercial properties. Many people assume a slip and fall is a minor accident, but that is not usually the case. A person can become severely injured in a slip and fall accident and hit their head, break bones, or hurt their back, to name just a few of the most common injuries. Injured individuals can hold property owners liable for a slip and fall when their negligent actions caused the accident. If you have been hurt, contact a Fort Lauderdale slip and fall lawyer before filing your claim.
Our Fort Lauderdale Slip and Fall Lawyer Examines the Common Causes of These Accidents
Any dangerous condition on a premise can result in a slip and fall accident. Still, there are some causes of slip and fall accidents that form the basis of personal injury claims more often than others. These include:
- Wet and slippery floors
- Inadequate lighting
- Cracked pavement and potholes
- Unmarked obstacles, such as uneven flooring
- Falling objects
- Loose or missing handrails
- Loose or missing stairs
Sadly, the above are just a few examples of the types of hazards that injure people while they are on other people’s property. A Fort Lauderdale personal injury lawyer will determine what caused your accident and collect the necessary evidence to prove your case.
Our Fort Lauderdale Slip and Fall Lawyer Knows the Law on These Accidents
All property owners are responsible for maintaining their premises in a safe condition for anyone that enters, regardless of whether the property is considered commercial, residential, private, or public. As mentioned by our premises liability lawyers in Fort Lauderdale, property owners are expected to regularly inspect their premises to discover dangerous conditions and correct them as needed. If a hazardous condition exists that has not yet been corrected, property owners have a responsibility to warn people entering the property.
Not all slip and fall accident victims are treated the same, however. The law distinguishes between people visiting a property for business, social visitors, and trespassers. Property owners owe people visiting the premises for business purposes the highest duty of care, while they are only required to keep social visitors reasonably safe. Trespassers are generally not owed a duty of care, although property owners cannot try to intentionally injure them.
Types of Slip and Fall Accident Damage Claims
After a slip and fall accident occurs, get medical care and follow through with your doctor’s recommendations. Prioritize healing, and let your slip and fall accident attorney in Fort Lauderdale do the hard work for you. We gather evidence that demonstrates all of the ways your injury is impacting your health, well-being, and finances, and build a robust claim. Some of the types of damages you may have include:
- Medical bills: Emergency medical care, treatment, hospitalization, medications, ongoing treatment, rehabilitation, and any other related costs to your care
- Ongoing medical limitations: If you are in need of in-home support, future medical procedures, modifications to your home or vehicle, or other supportive services
- Lost wages: Lost time at work, limitations on benefits, or use of personal time off, as well as loss of future earning capacity
- Pain and suffering: The impact of your injuries may play a role in your physical and emotional well-being, causing pain and suffering at the time of the incident and beyond
- Emotional trauma: Many people experience the need for care and suffer the onset of emotional trauma, depression, and anxiety
- Loss of quality of life: If you can no longer engage in activities that you had before, that could play a role
Both economic and non-economic damages after a slip and fall accident are directly related to the seriousness of the incident and whether you can recover. You should not file a claim until you are confident in what all of these losses are. Our legal team will help you determine more accurately what your rights are.
Do not overlook all ways in which this accident is impacting your life, such as relationships, disfigurement, loss of consortium, and even inconvenience. Let us help you settle your claim fairly.
Our Fort Lauderdale Slip and Fall Lawyer Will File Your Claim On Time
If you have been hurt in a slip and fall accident, you only have a limited time to file your claim. In Fort Lauderdale, as throughout the rest of Florida, you only have four years from the date of your accident to file. Before you file, an investigation must be conducted, and evidence must be collected to prove your case. For this reason, it is important to call a Fort Lauderdale slip and fall lawyer in the moments and days following your injury.
How We Gather Evidence of Fault in a Slip and Fall Accident
Proof of both the cause of your accident and the losses you have sustained validates your claim. Our Fort Lauderdale slip and fall lawyers will investigate all possible areas to determine what type of evidence may be available. Some of the ways we pursue evidence may include:
- Witness statements
- Videos and photo evidence from security cameras
- Photos you took of the accident scene
- Maintenance logs for the location
- Statements from workers about the condition of the space
- Previous injuries like your own that may indicate a common thread
- Injuries you have and what causes them
We speak to you, your family, and your doctors to fully understand the implications to health and well-being. Expect our lawyers to be thorough in investigating these details because it makes it harder for the insurance company to refute your claims.
What It Takes to Prove Negligence in a Slip and Fall Accident
A slip and fall accident must be related to negligence if you are going to recover damages from it. The burden of proving that the incident was negligence is on your shoulders as the victim. To do this, we need to verify several factors:
- You were legally allowed and expected on the property. If there is a no trespassing sign, that limits your right to be there.
- The party owned or managed the property. You can only file a claim against those responsible for these losses because they owned the property or were responsible for maintaining it.
- There was some type of dangerous condition or hazard present on the property. More so, the owner knew of that hazard or should have known about the hazard.
- The owner did not provide you with care because they did not fix the hazard or warn you about the presence of that hazard. They had the time to do so, but failed to take enough action.
- The inaction or the steps that the owner took caused your accident. We must demonstrate a clear link here.
- Your accident caused injuries. These injuries caused financial losses for you.
To prove all of this, our Fort Lauderdale accident lawyers will develop a clear outline of what happened and why. We use accident reconstruction tools when necessary to clarify why this incident occurred and who is responsible for the losses you incurred. We work aggressively to protect your rights.
When to Call Our Slip and Fall Accident Lawyers in Fort Lauderdale
You do not have to know you have a case to reach out to our legal team. Instead, we can help you immediately by providing a free consultation to discuss your rights and limitations with you. Our lawyer is always going to be honest and upfront with you about what your rights are under the law.
If you were hurt after slipping, tripping, or falling in any of the following areas, we encourage you to contact us:
- Restaurants and nightclubs
- Parking lots for retail locations
- Hotels or resorts
- Construction sites
- Office buildings
- Nursing homes
- Transit stations
- Hospitals
- Schools
- Grocery stores
In situations where you suffered injuries that required medical care, we encourage you not to settle your claim until you speak to our legal team. There is no risk in getting a free consultation from our team, but we will provide you with clarity on your rights.
Why Hire an Attorney for a Slip and Fall Accident
Our attorneys at Rosen Injury Law, P.A. are trusted because we are thorough, dedicated, and respectful to our clients. We know just how damaging this type of accident can be. When you hire our attorneys, you can:
- Focus on your recovery, and let us focus on getting justice for you
- File a maximum claim for the damages you have, often far above what most people believe are their requirements
- Expect us to fight for your rights, holding insurance companies accountable for your losses
- Reduce the risk of making statements that could be used against you
- Ensure you have every opportunity possible to recover your losses
We strongly recommend a free consultation even if you are not sure you have a case. We are here to help.
Call Our Slip And Fall Lawyer in Fort Lauderdale Today
Do not take a chance of losing out on the compensation you deserve by filing a claim on your own after an accident. At Rosen Injury Law, P.A., our Fort Lauderdale slip and fall lawyer will help you claim the maximum damages you deserve and will take care of every detail of your case for you. Call us today at 954-787-1500 or contact us online to schedule a free consultation.