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Slip and Fall Accidents

When you enter a business establishment, you are placing your safety in the hands of the owner of the facility. If you suffer a slip and fall accident on the premises, the owner of the facility may be at fault. The customer’s safety should be the number one priority of the owner. It can be incredibly frustrating to believe the owner of the business took that responsibility so lightly, and it ended up costing you your job, family, and lifestyle.

Slip and fall accidents can have lasting effects that not only impact you physically and emotionally but take a toll on your pocket as well. A trip to the emergency room, as a result of the slip and fall injury, can amount to hundreds of dollars, not to mention missed work time. If the slip and fall injury results in a severe injury, you can expect to be paying for medical bills for an extended period. You can receive compensation for your injury, if proven that it was the owner’s negligence that caused it, so contact a slip and fall accident lawyer to help you file a lawsuit.

Lawyer for Slip and Fall Accidents in Miami-Dade County, FL

If you are one of the millions of Floridians who have suffered from a slip and fall accident, you do not have to try to recover compensation on your own. Companies can be incredibly challenging to deal with, especially if you have to go through multiple parties to reach the insurance carrier or liability representative. Let us do the work for you by filing a lawsuit and making them respond under the court of law.

Abrams Justice Trial Attorneys is a compassionate and experienced personal injury firm that will do whatever they can to help you get back on your feet when an accident happens. We are experienced in many slip and fall cases. We understand the toll a slip and fall accident can have on you and your family. If you think a company is likely to ignore your slip and fall accident, we can make them listen.

Abrams Justice Trial Attorneys proudly serve clients in the greater Miami-Dade area, including Miami, Homestead, Hialeah, Pinecrest, Miami Gardens, Miami Beach, North Miami, Doral, Coral Gables, and Cutler Bay. We are ready to take your call at (305) 709-0880.


Miami-Dade County Slip and Fall Information Center


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Slip and Fall Facts

Slipping and falling at the supermarket is the last thing you worry about when you are out shopping for groceries; however, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) cites as many as 800,000 patients are hospitalized every year due to a fall.

Not only does the National Safety Council (NSC) cite slip and falls as the number one most preventable injury in the United States, but they are also the third most preventable fatal accident, only after motor accidents and opioid-related poisonings. A slip and fall can seem much smaller than an accident involving a car accident or drugs; but, most of them can require an emergency room visit which can amount to a lot of money. The National Safety Council also quotes compensation and medical costs from slip and fall accidents cost the country $70 billion annually.

Injuries from slip and falls are not only a concern because of the injuries they cause but also because those injuries can lead to significant time out of work. In 2002, the US Bureau of Labor Statistics quoted 22% of slip and fall incidents resulted in more than 31 days out of work.


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Most Common Injuries from Slip and Falls

The most debilitating feeling in a slip and fall accident does not come from the accident itself or pain after the fall. A slip and fall accident do not just end at the fall; instead, people have to face the doctor telling them they now have broken a bone or suffered an injury to the brain.

The Florida Department of Health released a report with a ranking of the most common unintentional fall injuries:

Non- Fatal Injuries

  • 32% – Hip Fractures
  • 14% – Lower Extremity Fracture
  • 14% – Traumatic Brain Injury
  • 13% – Upper Extremity Fracture
  • 9% – Spine/Back Fracture
  • 7% – Torso Fracture
  • 3% – Superficial Contusion
  • 9% – Other

Fatal Injuries

  • 61% – Traumatic Brain Injury
  • 25% – Hip Fracture
  • 7% – Other Lower Extremity Fracture
  • 5% – Neck/Vertebral Column Fracture
  • 2% – Torso fracture

The treatment for most injuries resulting from a slip and fall accident is also extensive and costly. The most common non-fatal injury of a slip and fall accident, a hip fracture has three types of repairs:

  • Repair using screws – Screws are inserted into the bone or attached with a metal plate to hold the bone together and allow it to heal.
  • Partial hip replacement – This procedure usually involves a surgeon sawing off the top of the femur bone and replacing it with a metal head that fits into a cup installed in the hip socket.
  • Total hip replacement – This procedure is the most extensive. It requires the surgeon sawing off the top of the femur, drilling down into the femur, inserting a metal stem into the femur, and then placing a metal or plastic head on top of the stem, which will fit into a cup installed in the hip socket.

Similarly, the CDC cites falls as the number one cause of  traumatic brain injuries. Traumatic brain injuries have a more delicate treatment process since they do not require a direct solution or treatment. Traumatic brain injuries can require surgery or prescribed medications to reduce the overall long-term effects of a traumatic brain injury, while not entirely curing the affliction.


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Common Hazards of Slip and Fall Accidents

Usually, an establishment owner arranges a walkthrough of the premises to make sure safety hazards are eliminated. However, a negligent owner may not pay attention to these hazards. Some common safety hazards that are likely to cause slip and fall accidents can include the following:

  • Uneven flooring or walking surfaces (i.e., steps, staircase, thresholds)
  • Loose mats, carpets, rugs, or floorboards
  • Folded carpets, rugs, or mats
  • Recently mopped floors
  • Wet, oily, or greasy floors
  • Spills
  • Ice or snow (not salted)
  • Loose wires

Additionally, the following can contribute to a slip and fall:

  • Poor lighting
  • Cluttered pathway
  • Opened drawers
  • Loose shelves
  • Obstructed views

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Florida Laws Ruling Liability in Slip and Fall Accidents

The law regarding premises liability for slip and falls in Florida was changed in 2012 to make it more difficult for victims to recover against business establishments. Fla. Stat. § 768.0755, the new law for slips and falls liability, reads:

(1) If a person slips and falls on a transitory foreign substance in a business establishment, the injured person must prove that the business establishment had actual or constructive knowledge of the dangerous condition and should have taken action to remedy it. Constructive knowledge may be proven by circumstantial evidence showing that:

(a) The dangerous condition existed for such a length of time that, in the exercise of ordinary care, the business establishment should have known of the condition; or

(b) The condition occurred with regularity and was therefore foreseeable.

(2) This section does not affect any common-law duty of care owed by a person or entity in possession or control of a business premises.

Previous to the law changing in 2012, victims only had to prove that they fell and were injured on the premises of a business. Now, the law requires that the property owner had actual or constructive knowledge of the dangerous condition. The injured party must show that, either:

  • the owner knew there was a dangerous condition that could lead to a slip and fall; or
  • the owner should have known that there was a dangerous condition because the condition had existed for a long enough, that it ordinarily should have been found and fixed, or the condition occurred regularly enough that it would have been known.

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How to Establish Liability

Though individuals fear the new law might negate their right to compensation, if the establishment is at least partly at fault for the accident, it’s worth getting a slip and fall lawyer to review your case. Not all slip and fall cases make it to court, but that is because the court is the last option for how they can be settled. You can still receive some compensation if you can prove the above points. If you do decide to file against a slip and fall, you only have so much time for it to be considered valid. Florida’s statute of limitations gives you the right to file for a personal injury slip and fall suit based on negligence within four years of the accident. Additionally, you can take the following steps as soon as you suffer your slip and fall:

  • Contact a slip and fall lawyer
  • Research the business or company’s policies
  • Obtain police report, if applicable
  • Obtain witnesses’ information (names and phones numbers)
  • Obtain names of the employees at the business who you spoke to after the accident
  • File a claim or get in contact with the business or company’s HR or grievance department
  • Gather necessary evidence (i.e., medical bills, doctor’s notes or diagnosis, prescription receipts, video footage, photos, etc.)

 


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Slip and Fall Additional Resources

Florida Unintentional Fall Facts – This resource from the Florida Department of Health has a wealth of data on fall injuries for the state. The information provided includes breakdowns for falls based on gender, race, and types of falls. The research also dives in the amount of money that is spend as a result of the injuries. 

National Floor Safety Institute – The link here is a list of facts that were compiled by the National Floor Safety Institute. The points listed are for the United States at large. You can find statistics relating to the cause and the effects of some of these injuries. 


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Slip and Fall Attorney in Miami, FL

Though the new liability law makes it more difficult to prove the business establishment was at fault for your accident, you can still file a lawsuit if you believe the business establishment was negligent to your slip and fall. If the owner of the establishment was negligent to the cause of your slip and fall accident, you need to bring it to their attention, as it can happen to another individual. Receive your right to compensation by seeking help from our lawyers at Abrams Justice Trial Attorneys.

Abrams Justice Trial Attorneys has extensive trial experience and will do what they can to get you compensation for your injury. Abrams Justice Trial Attorneys will fight tooth and nail to make negligent parties pay to get you back on your feet. Even if you believe the accident is partially your fault, do not hesitate to seek legal representation. Chances are the object that struck you or caused your slip and fall was not supposed to be there in the first place. We want to help you make things right.

We represent injured people in communities throughout the Miami area, including North Miami, Miami Beach, Miami Gardens, Doral, Homestead, Cutler Bay, Hialeah, Coral Gables, and Pinecrest. We have staff standing by to discuss and evaluate your case if you call this number (305) 709-0880.


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