Those who have lost a loved one or been injured because of a slip and fall accident could be entitled to compensatory damages. A slip and fall attorney in St. Petersburg can help you complete an insurance claim or personal injury lawsuit while recovering from your injuries.
A slip and fall injury can cause serious bodily damage, including broken bones, head injuries, and internal organ damage. If you were hurt in a slip-and-fall accident, it is important to seek legal counsel as soon as possible. Call our St. Petersburg personal injury law firm today for a free initial consultation to discuss your case and legal options.
Slip and Falls Are Often Caused by Negligence
If negligent parties fail to protect their customers or visitors from harm due to dangerous conditions on their premises, they could be liable for resulting injuries.
These accidents often occur when a person slips and falls due to a defect in the flooring or other surface that causes them to lose balance and fall.
Common causes of slip and falls injuries include:
- Poorly maintained floors: Floors should be well-maintained so that they are safe for people to walk on. This includes ensuring no loose tiles, cracks, holes, or other hazards on the floor.
- Improper lighting: Lighting fixtures must be properly installed and maintained. They should also be placed at appropriate heights and distances from objects such as furniture and counters.
- Wet floors: Wet surfaces can pose a risk of slipping and falling. The best way to prevent this type of accident is to keep floors dry.
- Inadequate handrails: Handrails should be provided where needed to ensure safety. These include railings around staircases, ramps, and elevators.
- Unsafe walking areas: Walking areas should be clear of debris, trash, and other obstacles.
- Unsecured objects: Objects left lying on the ground may present a hazard. For example, if someone trips over a toy or piece of clothing, they could trip again if the object is not removed.
- Unsafe walkways: Walkways should be clear of obstructions like toys and clutter.
Establishing Negligence in a Slip and Fall Accident
Our experienced personal injury lawyers can help prove a property owner’s negligence. They do this by establishing the property owner owes you a duty of care. This generally means maintaining a safe property when:
- Showing that the property owner’s premises contained hazardous conditions
- Proving that the property owner was responsible for any injuries you suffered
- Identifying the specific defects that caused your fall
- Determining whether the property owner knew or should have known about these defects
- Providing evidence that the property owner failed to correct the problem after being notified of it
- Establishing that your fall has resulted in numerous forms of harm
The American Bar Association (ABA) explains that the property owner did not have to intend to harm you to be negligent. A property owner’s negligence could stem from the following:
- Their failure to monitor their premises for hazards
- Their failure to train employees regarding the detection and cleanup of slipping hazards
- Their general lack of care for their property
- Their failure to alert you to specific slipping hazards on their property
Victims who visit a property have a reasonable expectation of safety, especially if they act normally. If you or your loved one slipped, fell, and became injured, a negligent property owner could be responsible for your losses.
We Can Defend Your Rights
Lawyers can do a lot for their clients, but they may generally begin by defending their clients’ rights. We will ensure that you are not coerced into making statements under pressure. We will protect you from unwanted communication by any parties who may try to apply such pressure.
Throughout the legal process, a personal injury attorney from our firm will handle as much of your personal injury claim or lawsuit as possible. By leading your case, we insulate you from direct contact with insurance companies or any parties that may attempt to use your words or actions against you.
Our goal will be to obtain compensation for your fall-related losses. Though our team may ask you for certain information (about your losses, for example) or make statements, we will handle most of your insurance claims or lawsuit.
Economic and Non-Economic Damages in a Slip and Fall Accident
Being injured or losing a loved one because of a slip-and-fall accident can harm you in various ways. In the case that you or your loved one is injured from a slip and fall, then losses may include:
- A decline in mental health that may include depression or other diagnosable conditions
- The cost of emergency treatment and medical attention, including physical therapy
- The medical cost of surgery and other medical procedures
- Lost wages due to fall-related injuries
- Future decline in earning power
- Permanent disability
- The cost of temporary or full-time caregivers
- The cost of medication for pain and other fall-related symptoms
- Past and future pain and suffering
- Loss of enjoyment
Injuries from falls can vary drastically from one victim to another. The same injury may also affect two personal injury victims differently. For these reasons, your St. Petersburg slip and fall accident lawyer will obtain available information to understand your injuries and their negative impact on you.
Call our law offices today to learn whether we can lead your slip and fall accident case.
The Consequences of Head Trauma and Other Fall-Related Injuries
Knowing that slipping could lead to a fall, you or your loved one may be dealing with the symptoms of a traumatic brain injury (TBI):
These symptoms may include:
- Poor cognitive function: memory loss, confusion, inability to concentrate, difficulty thinking clearly
- Headaches: constant headaches, migraines, dizziness, nausea, vomiting
- Drowsiness: Feeling tired, having trouble staying awake, sleeping more than usual
- Depression: Feelings of sadness, hopelessness, anxiety, irritability, anger, guilt, worthlessness
- Light sensitivity: Difficulty seeing well at night, light sensitivity during the day
- Changes in your personality: Changes in mood, behavior, ability to think, problem-solving skills
- Unconsciousness that may qualify as a coma: Loss of consciousness without being able to respond to questions
- Seizures: Severe shaking of the head, body, arms, legs, or face
- Muscle weakness: Unable to move limbs or muscles
- Numbness: Feeling numbness or tingling in parts of the body
- Hearing problems: Hearing loss, ringing in ears, dizziness, vertigo
- Memory problems: Forgetting things, feeling disoriented, unable to remember events
- Difficulty speaking: Slurring speech, stuttering
- Emotional stress: Anger, frustration, fear, worry
These and other symptoms of traumatic injury may change much about your quality of life. You or your loved one with a TBI may not be able to communicate normally, let alone work.
Victims of traumatic brain injuries could go from healthy to severely handicapped as a direct result of their injury.
Other Injuries Related to Slip and Falls
The other injuries from a slip and fall accident may also have severe consequences.
These injuries may include:
- Broken bones: Broken bones, including fractures, sprains, and broken ribs
- Neck injuries: Neck injuries such as whiplash, neck sprain, and cervical strain
- Internal bleeding: Bleeding inside the body that requires medical attention
- Severe bruising: Bruising that is deep purple or black
- Lacerations: Lacerations are cuts that occur when skin is torn off its surface
- Damage to internal organs: Damage to internal organs such as the heart, lungs, liver, or kidneys
- Dislocated joints: Joints can become dislocated if they are forced out of place
- Shoulder injury: A fall-related injury may cause a dislocated or a “brachial plexus injury.” A system of nerves referred to as the brachial plexus connects the spinal cord to the arm, shoulder, and hand.
- Spinal cord injury: Injury to the spinal cord that results in paralysis
Falls can vary in intensity, and no two slip-and-fall victims will have the same losses. We can rely on medical professionals and your account of your losses to determine how your accident negatively affected you.
If an injured loved one cannot communicate or has passed away, you can communicate how your loved one’s injuries have affected them.
Call the Law Offices of Anidjar & Levine Today
Your fall may have left you in both physical and psychological pain. You may have lost a loved one from injuries caused by a fall. Whatever the unpleasant outcomes you have experienced, a St. Petersburg slip and fall accident lawyer from the Law Office of Anidjar & Levine can recover the compensation to which you may be entitled.
Contact us today to schedule your free consultation and discuss beginning your accident claim with our team. We work on a contingency-fee-basis, so there is no obligation.
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