Slip & Fall

Duty owed

When you file a lawsuit for a slip and fall accident, you may need to explain what you were doing on the property. Whatever you were doing on the property may determine what kind of legal obligation the property owner owes you. This is important to prove the duty and potential damages.

For instance, there’s a difference between going into a restaurant to order food and entering because you want to use the rest-room. In both situations, whether you can sue depends on what you went in for. A Miami slip and fall accident lawyer can help clear the difference up so you can understand the significance in court.

Invitees:

Any patron of a business or individual invited to do business within the property owner’s premises is an invitee. So this would be the case if you went into a restaurant to order food, rather than use the rest-room. The owners owe these people the highest duty of care. The duty involves inspecting the premises, taking note of every hazardous situation and taking steps to correct it immediately or warn patrons of their existence.

Licensees:

These are individuals that are invited onto premises, not for business, but for social or casual visits. This category of visitor would be someone who went to a restaurant to use the rest room. The property owner also owes you an obligation to keep the premises reasonably safe. But the obligation is lower here. In these cases the owner may not need to inspect the premises to uncover new hazards. They need to warn you about existing harmful conditions or correct them.

Trespassers:

The property owner barely owes this category of individuals an obligation. Trespassers should not be on the property in the first place, and if a trespasser is injured by a hazardous condition, they may not be able to claim compensation. But how do you know you’re a trespasser? Ask yourself if you would be welcome on the property if the owner saw you and consult with a slip and fall accident lawyer.

But if the trucking company knew about the driver’s drinking problem and still let him drive, they could also be liable to you.

You need to show that a dangerous or harmful condition existed on the property that the owner should have known about. This condition has to present an unreasonable risk of harm. This means that it’s not to be an obvious, avoidable hazard.

Dangerous conditions can be if you are using the stairs in a business building and the poorly maintained railing fails or breaks. You did not expect you would lose the railing support at the time you did. But slippery spills on supermarket floors also amount to dangerous conditions. Specially when management does not address these hazards as they should.

Notice

It is important to show that the property owner had ‘notice’ of the dangerous condition. This means showing that they either knew or should have reasonably known about it.

If a freezer constantly drips water on the floor in the frozen foods section, the owner may be expected to know about it and fix it.

Reasonable measures

In addition to showing that a dangerous condition existed, you may have to show the property owner did not act reasonably to fix it. In some cases the property owner must inspect the premises and correct harmful situations.

Unreasonable

Leaving unattended spills on the floor for  a long time can be unreasonable in some cases. There are times, where a reasonable property owner would ensure that the premises are routinely inspected and all identified hazards are swiftly taken care of.

• Did the owner or manager know about the dangerous condition?
• Are the premises routinely inspected and is there proof that they are?
• Was there a good reason why the hazard existed at the time and was there  proper warning of its existence?
• Could something have been done to eliminate the hazard and make the area safer?
• Was the danger of creating the condition foreseeable or preventable?
• If an object caused the accident, could it have been placed more properly or even elsewhere in the building?

Take these actions immediately after your Miami slip and fall accident:

• Take photos of the accident scene, including whatever hazard led to your fall. Also take current pictures of your injuries as well, both immediately and over time.
• Report the accident to the owner or manager of the building as soon as possible.
• Seek medical attention immediately and keep all follow-up doctor’s appointments.
• Document everything that happened while it is fresh in your mind.