Category: Premises Liability

Slip and fall accidents can happen in the blink of an eye. Whether it’s a wet floor in a grocery store or a poorly maintained sidewalk, these incidents can result in serious injuries and life-altering consequences. If you find yourself the unfortunate victim of a slip and fall, it is crucial to know what steps to take immediately to protect your rights and well-being.

Understanding Slip and Fall Accidents: Immediate Steps to Take

Slip and fall accidents are sudden and can have severe consequences. Occurring in places like grocery stores with wet floors or on unmaintained sidewalks, these incidents can lead to significant injuries that may alter your life. Knowing the immediate actions to take post-accident is crucial for safeguarding your rights and well-being.

Prioritize Your Safety

Your immediate concern after a slip and fall should be your safety. Evaluate yourself for injuries and seek medical attention if needed. If possible, move to a safe area to avoid further harm. Notify the property owner, manager, or employees about the incident to make them aware of the hazard that led to your fall.

Document the Incident Scene

Evidence preservation is key to a strong legal case. Use your smartphone or camera to take detailed photos of the scene, particularly focusing on the condition that caused your fall. Capture images of any injuries and the general environment, including signs, lighting, and potential witnesses.

Collect Witness Information

If anyone witnessed your accident, collecting their contact details is crucial. Witnesses can provide essential accounts of the incident, contributing valuable evidence to your case. Secure names, phone numbers, and addresses of all witnesses.

Report the Incident

Report the accident to the property owner, manager, or relevant staff members promptly. Ensure the event is recorded in their logs and ask for a copy of the report. For falls on public property, report the incident to the corresponding government entity.

Preserve All Evidence

Keeping all evidence intact is vital for your claim. Store the clothes and shoes you wore during the accident without altering them. Avoid fixing or discarding any personal items damaged during the fall until you consult with your attorney.

Seek Medical Attention

Injuries from slip and fall accidents might not be immediately apparent. Visit a healthcare provider for a thorough evaluation, even for seemingly minor injuries. Medical documentation is indispensable for proving the extent of your injuries and related costs.

Document Injuries and Recovery Process

Keep an exhaustive record of your injuries, symptoms, and recovery journey. This documentation is crucial for calculating your claim’s value. Include all medical expenses, receipts for prescriptions, and costs associated with your rehabilitation.

Our Syracuse Premises Liability Attorneys Can Help You

A slip-and-fall accident can have far-reaching consequences, affecting your physical well-being, financial stability, and overall quality of life. Reach out to the dedicated personal injury team at CDH Law and we will begin immediately working to protect and enforce your right to be fairly compensated for the harm you have suffered. Contact us today.

Were you hurt on someone else’s property? If so, you could be owed compensation for what you’ve suffered, although you’re likely feeling overwhelmed about pursuing it. What if the property owner is a family friend? What if the accident happened at a business you frequent regularly? The good news is that you don’t have to answer these questions alone. Instead, you can turn to Carden Dotzler Hammond, PLLC. Here’s why you need experienced legal help to pursue your claim effectively.

What Is Premises Liability?

Premises liability falls under the broad umbrella of personal injury law, which serves as a way to hold individuals or companies accountable when their carelessness, recklessness, or other legal fault causes injuries or financial loss. Premises liability cases are a unique category of personal injury law. They are a tool injured individuals can use to hold property owners or occupiers accountable for their failure to keep their properties safe for lawful visitors.

Such parties are responsible for maintaining a reasonably safe environment for visitors, guests, and patrons. Failing to address significant safety hazards or maintenance issues can lead to accidents. When this happens, the victim of the accident can seek compensation for their injuries and financial losses. Most property owners maintain insurance to help them cover the cost of such accidents. However, a personal injury lawsuit may be necessary in some situations to recover full and fair compensation. 

Types of Premises Liability Claims

From slipping on ice to taking a tumble at a shopping mall, premises liability claims can address a number of different injuries. Some common types of premises liability claims involve:

• Slip and falls
• Dog bites or dog attacks
• Elevator accidents
• Inclement weather accidents caused by uncleared snow or ice
• Amusement Park accidents
• Swimming pool accidents
• Injuries caused by negligent security

If you’ve been injured on someone else’s property and believe their careless actions are to blame, you need to discuss your situation with an experienced lawyer immediately.

Why You Need an Attorney for Your Premises Liability Claim 

Filing a premises liability claim can be challenging. To win yours, you will need to prove that:

• An unsafe condition on someone else’s property caused your injury
• The property owner or occupier knew or should have known of the unsafe condition and did not address it
• What you were doing on the property entitled you to safe use of the property

Proving all these elements can be difficult, especially when you’re going up against property owners and insurance companies who want to keep money in their pockets and out of yours. Insurers may use aggressive tactics to trick or intimidate you into settling for less than the full value of your claim. Going head-to-head with an insurer or the property owner is unlikely to be in your best interest. That’s why you need an attorney to help you manage your premises liability claim. An attorney advocates on your behalf to increase the amount of compensation you may recover.

How exactly do they go about this? A personal injury lawyer can carefully review your claim and outline your legal options for pursuing compensation. From there, your attorney will begin investigating the incident, collecting and preserving vital evidence to build a compelling claim in your favor. With solid evidence of the property owner’s negligence, your attorney is in a powerful position to negotiate for the money you need to cover your financial losses. And because they’re handling all the heavy legal lifting, you have the time to recover from your injuries without having to deal with a lot of paperwork and negotiations yourself.

Reach Out to a Skilled New York Premises Liability Attorney for Help 

Have you recently been injured while on someone else’s property in Syracuse, NY? At Carden Dotzler Hammond, PLLC, our legal team can handle every aspect of your premises liability claim while you focus on healing. Your journey towards justice starts now. Contact us today to set up a complimentary legal consultation with a Syracuse premises liability attorney.