No Spill – No Problem: Understanding Slip and Fall Claims

Most of the time when you hear about someone falling and getting injured at a restaurant or a grocery store, you automatically think it’s because of water, or Coke, or another hazard someone spilled. However, that’s not always the case.  Unfortunately, an establishment can be unsafe without an actual spill. There are multiple building codes and business regulations in place that establishments have to comply with, but unfortunately, some just do not.

For example, there may be a stairway that does not have railings or the stairs are uneven which make traversing them very difficult. Another example would be a business that has a ramp that does not have “anti-slick” paint on it which increases the likelihood for someone to fall. How many times have you noticed the pavement or cement outside a gas station that is uneven but painted the same color, or gone to a grocery store in the evening and saw that the lighting n the parking lot was insufficient?

Businesses have a responsibility to the people that visit their establishments to make sure it is safe. There are any number of hazards at an establishment beyond spilled liquids. If you or someone you care about trips and falls in one of these scenarios, you may still have a claim. However, you need to make sure you do all you can to preserve the claim. Here are a few tips to keep in mind:

• Take pictures of the hazard;
• Take pictures of the surrounding areas, especially the lighting as it is in that moment;
• Ask any witnesses for their contact information;
• Tell the manager or whoever’s in charge to preserve any and all video surveillance;
• If you are hurting at the moment, ask for medical assistance.

For any premises case, but especially a “static defect” claim, it is important to obtain information about how the scene looked at the time you fell. Establishments are notorious for materially changing the areas where people fell—repainting, adding railways where there weren’t any, or even changing the lightbulbs to make the area seem a lot brighter. Why do they do this? So they can simply turn around and blame you for falling instead of accepting responsibility.

At Johnson & Alday, we specialized in these types of cases and know how to attack these claims. We work to make sure these establishments own up to their mistakes and get you the compensation you deserve. If you’ve been injured, contact Johnson & Alday today and schedule your free case evaluation.