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Slip & Fall

How To Get Compensation After a Miami Slip & Fall Accident

Miami slip and fall accidents are avoidable. Usually, you did not fall and crack your hip bone because you are clumsy.

If you are injured because of a Miami slip and fall accident it may have been because somebody was negligent.

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Slip & Fall

Statistics

The Consumer Product Safety Commission has said that unsafe floors and defective or improperly maintained flooring accounts for about 2,000,000 slip and fall injuries each year. That’s not your clumsiness.

Uncleaned spills, faulty steps or railings can cause injury. If you were injured due to a bad situation on a property, it is possible that the owner left the hazard  unattended and you may have a right to compensation. So it’s suggested to speak with a Miami slip and fall accident lawyer.

Whats the worst that can happen?

According to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration data, slips, trips, and falls make up an estimated 15% of all accidental deaths in the US. So slip and falls are the second leading cause of unintentional deaths, right behind car accidents.

In 2015 alone, about 22,000 people died from slip and fall accidents. This figure is much more that the 7,700 recorded in the past 10 years.

Medical bills, lost wages, pain & suffering

An injury can cause interruption or inconvenience to your normal life. Logically, it’s unfair to suffer an injury and have to cover the cost of all the consequences. Specially when the cause is someone else’s negligence. Thats why you should explore your options with a Miami slip and fall accident lawyer. Slip and fall cases tend to be complex. But our lawyers at PereGonza The Attorneys have experience fighting for victims. So if you or any of your loved ones have been a victim of a miami slip and fall accident, contact us today for a free, no-obligation consultation. Read on to understand more about slip and fall accidents and how attorneys can help prove your case.

How much damage?

When a slip and fall accident occurs, people tend to ignore the accident and pretend it never happened. But what people don’t know, is that many times injuries can build up and worsen with time. Statistically, slip and falls are some of the most common accidents around, and they cause a lot of loss, pain, and suffering.

Slip and Falls are One of the Leading Causes of Non-Fatal Injuries

Slip and falls are the leading causes of non-fatal injuries. Once they occur, they create a risk of injuries including soft tissue injuries, also tearing ligaments, muscle injury, and even cartilage. They also pose the risk of broken bones and fractures. In fact, there is a 5% chance that something breaks every time a slip and fall accident occurs.

Brain injury

The Center for Disease Control (CDC) reports that slip and falls are the most common cause of brain injury. These are often challenging to diagnose, treat and live with. They may often cause significant long term effects that may affect cognition and capacity.

Expenses for victims

Aside from the physical and emotional problems, Miami slip and fall accidents can cause big expenses. The CDC, estimates that the average medical bill for treating a slip and fall injury is more than $30,000. These injuries cost Americans more than $34 billion per year. It may be strategic to meet with a Miami slip and fall accident lawyer to know your rights. The costs of seeking medical treatment and the impact on your daily life often leave victims struggling. But you may be entitled to recover compensation that will make you whole.

Proving your Miami slip and fall lawsuit

Causation

In order to recover compensation for a slip and fall accident, you must show that the injury was caused by the property owner’s negligence. But how do you go about establishing this? Many times this is why you may need the assistance of Miami slip and fall accident lawyer.

Duty & breach

It all comes down to proving that the owner owed you a duty of care and that duty was breached, causing your injuries.
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important things you should know

Questions And Answers

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.

There are many factors that determine what you may be able to recover in compensation. Every Miami slip and fall accident claim is different. It depends on the circumstances of your case, the severity of your injuries, and even the limits of the property owner’s insurance policy.

It is a combination of all these factors, including the economic loss you have incurred that may determine how much you may recover. After your initial meeting, we will carefully review all the facts of your Miami slip and fall accident. We can evaluate things like your medical records, to arrive at an estimate of your possible compensation.

In some cases, if you were trespassing you may not be able to recover any compensation. Simply because the property owner owes you far reduced obligations in the circumstances.

However, there are cases where you may still be able to recover. Under Florida law, a property owner cannot set a trap for trespassers. If a dog guards the property, the law requires that there be at least one sign informing trespassers.

Also, where the property owner has an “attractive danger”, specially if it is attractive to kids. If it is on the premises, like a swimming pool, owners have a duty to prevent danger. They must do this by taking steps to limit access to the pool or otherwise make the threat inaccessible to kids.

Get a Miami slip and fall accident lawyer

If you believe you have been injured as a trespasser you should inform your Miami slip and fall accident lawyer. At PereGonza The Attorneys, we are committed to helping you every step of the way.

What happens when you were more focused on your phone and failed to notice the slippery puddle on the floor? Or how about if you were wearing shoes that contributed to your Miami slip and fall accident? You may be thinking this bars you from receiving compensation and you may be wrong.

Even if you were partially at fault in the accident, you may still be able to receive compensation for the part that was not your fault.

Comparative negligence

Florida is a comparative negligence state. This means sometimes your fault may be weighed against the other parties fault. But sometimes your compensation may be reduced in relation to your responsibility.

So, if you were 10% at fault and the amount awarded is $100,000, you may still be entitled to recover $90,000.

Can you assume Fault in Miami slip and fall accidents?

Do not assume you were at fault. Even if you reasonably believe that you may have contributed to the accident you can be wrong. Keep the opinion to yourself and only communicate this to your lawyer. This does not mean you should lie, NEVER LIE.

It only means that you don’t really know the full circumstances of the case until an investigation is conducted. Admitting fault before then will put needless holes in your case.

 

How will a Miami slip and fall accident lawyer help you?

Our Miami slip and fall accident lawyers at PereGonza The Attorneys can help you recover compensation. Our team will bring all our experience to represent you. But our goal is always to help  recover the compensation you deserve.

If you or any of your loved ones were injured in a Miami slip and fall accident, contact us today to start the process of recovering compensation. Call us on (786)650-0202 to schedule a free, no-obligation consultation today.

 

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