Over one million people are injured every year when falling, tripping, or slipping in various ways. These injuries can result in loss of income from missing work as well as excessive medical bills. The following are 5 things your accident injury lawyer can tell you about Florida slip and fall injuries.
1. How Slip and Fall Injuries are Defined
An accident injury lawyer will tell a client the specifics about what are considered slip and fall injuries. A few include trip and fall in which an individual falls over an object in their path; step and fall which involves a low spot or hole in the path; and slip and fall which means an object or liquid causes the fall. Attorneys.com states that in Florida three things must be proven in court in slip and fall cases. The first is that the property owner owed a duty of care to an injured individual. The second is that the owner didn’t use reasonable care in maintaining the property. Finally, because there wasn’t reasonable care, a person was injured.
2. The Types of Slip and Fall Injuries
Everything from broken bones to concussions could occur after slipping and falling. According to accidentdoctor.org, it is imperative to see a doctor as soon as possible after receiving an injury in an accident. Without medical documentation regarding the specific injuries sustained in an accident, it will be difficult for an attorney to prove injury and win the case. An accident injury lawyer will tell potential clients not to wait, whether they think they are injured or not, but to see a doctor immediately after an accident has occurred.
3. Steps to Take After a Slip and Fall at a Store
According to youtube.com stores are required to use reasonable care to keep the store safe for customers. The store must also make routine inspections to keep the retail store safe. If an individual is injured in a store and is able to do so, taking pictures of the area where the injury took place could provide strong evidence for the case. A store manager should be asked to fill out an incident report as soon as possible after any injury has occurred.
4. Explaining What a Demand Letter Is
According to All Law, a demand letter informally starts the settlement negotiation process. Part of this process includes detailing specific aspects of the case. How the accident happened, the injuries involved, and any witnesses to the event would be part of the demand letter. Finally, a demand for a specific amount of financial compensation is also defined.
5. Why Obtaining Skilled Representation is Crucial
Determining liability in a slip and fall case is often complicated. Deciding what is “reasonable” care in maintaining a property can be subjective. This means that winning a case and recovering damages may come down to a single piece of evidence or be directly related to having a clear understanding of the law in each specific case. Having a lawyer who has experience handling slip and fall cases and also fully understands Florida law can make all the difference in the outcome of a case.
Kaiser Romanello has experience handling a variety of legal issues, including personal injury involving slip and fall cases. For a free case evaluation contact Kaiser Romanello.