If you slip and fall, you may be interested in filing a claim against the owner of the property. You will need to make sure that you have information on the situation that led to your fall, and you’ll have to show that the owner or possessor of the property did not take precautions to prevent your injuries.
If you can show that the owner or possessor was not maintaining the property well or that he or she somehow ignored issues that later led to your injuries, then you’ll be in a good position to win your claim.
Expectations: What a property owner should do
There are some expectations that the law has for property owners. For instance, the property owner should mop, wax, or polish the floors to keep them safe. However, if someone falls on a wet or slick floor, that could still open the owner up to liability. Why? They should have informed individuals coming onto the property about the risk of falling.
What are some instances that could lead to liability?
Here are a few examples:
- Not barricading or placing a barrier between a slick area and other areas of the property
- Not informing visitors or customers about wet floors
- Applying slick floor treatments to inclining or declining areas of the floor
- Using excessive wax or polish
- Not repairing broken, torn or bulging areas of flooring
Each of these issues could lead to a slip-and-fall accident, which could, in turn, lead to a person’s injuries.
Of course, it’s not just floors that are dangerous. Property owners are also intended to make their stairs safe, to provide railings and to apply non-skid surfacing. They should also make sure mechanical tools, like escalators or elevators, are in proper working order. If they are not, there is a risk that they could break and harm a visitor in some way.
In your case, you’ll want to take photos, keep medical records and even gather witness names and testimonies for your claim. You may be able to file a personal injury claim with the owner’s insurance, but if not, you will need this information for a personal injury lawsuit.
Any time a property owner doesn’t take steps to keep others safe, it’s your right to pursue a claim and hold them responsible. It doesn’t take much effort to warn others about hazards on a property, so it’s fair to hold owners responsible.
