Falls account for more than 8 million emergency room visits in the U.S. and are considered the top cause of hospital visits. Also, 12 percent of total falls are due to slip and fall accidents. Slip and fall is not actually a literal term because it could be a classic slip and a fall, miss and a fall, trip and a fall, or other kinds of fall variations. But regardless of the variation, a slip and fall injury victim can pursue compensation under premises liability laws from the owner or manager of the property where the injury occurred.
But property managers or owners may not always be liable when someone gets injured. You will have to prove their negligence to hold them legally liable for your injuries. Here at The Law Office of Joel M. Vecchio, P.C., our highly experienced Plano slip and fall attorney can help you with your premises liability claim to make certain that you receive fair compensation for your slip and fall injury.
Various injuries could result from slip and fall accidents, depending on a range of factors. Older victims, for instance, and those with pre-existing health conditions like neck or back issues, have an increased risk of sustaining serious and life-changing injuries. With that said, even seemingly minor injuries may turn out to be serious in the long run. The most common slip and fall accident injuries include:
Both involve the stretching or tearing of soft tissue. Strains impact the tendon muscles, while sprains impact the ligaments. Both, however, could be very painful and cause a reduced range of motion (ROM). These injuries usually affect the ankles, wrists, and elbows.
The National Floor Safety Institute (NFSI) states that 1 in 20 falls causes a broken or fractured bone. With fractures, the compensation would significantly depend on which bone was fractured, the severity of the fracture, and/or related injuries.
Among the leading causes of back and spinal injuries in the U.S. are slips and falls. The force applied when you land on your back after a fall could literally break your vertebrae, consequently applying undue pressure on your spinal cord, and potentially cause excruciating pain, or worse, permanent paralysis. Other common back injuries in slips and falls are compressed, slipped, or herniated discs. When damaged, these discs, which are fibrous cushions that protect your spine, could result in reduced mobility and severe pain.
These are definitely the most serious injuries that could result from slip and fall accidents when the victim’s head hits the ground. Traumatic brain injuries (TBIs) are immensely serious because they can be difficult to treat, worsen over time, and change the lives of the victims and their loved ones forever.
In most cases, an injured victim was not liable for the hazard that caused the accident. But proving liability for a slip and fall accident could sometimes be challenging, depending on the specific facts of the accident. This is where assistance from an experienced Plano slip and fall attorney can prove to be invaluable.
Broadly speaking, businesses owe customers a legal duty of care while these people are on their premises. This means that if you’ve sustained injuries when you slipped and fell, you might be entitled to compensation from the business owner or management because the owner or management has a legal obligation to keep their premises reasonably accessible and safe for visitors. This obligation may also extend to the common areas, sidewalks, and parking spaces.
But slip and fall accident claims could come with complex legal issues, which are best interpreted by an experienced Plano slip and fall accident attorney. For example, although every claim will come with specific circumstances, there are a couple of vital issues that typically arise in slip and fall accidents.
In certain cases, like a slip and fall accident on your neighbor’s walkway, determining who maintains the property is easy. But if the accident occurred on a sidewalk or parking lot, for instance, liability may be harder to determine, especially if the local government is responsible for maintaining the area where you fell. Figuring out all potentially responsible parties will help determine how much insurance coverage may be available to cover your claim.
This is the most common defense that property owners use when injured victims file a slip and fall injury claim against them. The reason for this is that in Texas, injured victims who may have some liability for their accident may have their compensation reduced according to their level of fault for the accident.
Slip and fall accident claims might seem straightforward. Still, you should be aware that business owners and their insurance providers are experts at dealing with such claims, so they can very easily lawyer up to intimidate you into accepting a low settlement amount or deny your claim by saying that you’re liable for the accident.
With our experienced Plano slip and fall attorney on your side, however, we can ensure that you receive fair compensation for your injuries. Call The Law Office of Joel M. Vecchio, P.C., at 972-380-4444 to schedule your free claim evaluation or contact us online.
