A slip and fall accident can happen to anyone. However, when someone’s slip and fall is somebody else’s fault, the outcome is completely different. A slip and fall injury accident can affect a person’s overall quality of life. The injuries a person can sustain during a slip and fall accident are often significantly worse for older adults and people with preexisting injuries or handicaps. Furthermore, a slip and fall injury could mean costly medical bills, lost wages, pain, and suffering. The Reiff Law Firm’s Hazleton slip and fall lawyers invite you to keep reading and learn more about slip and fall accidents and what to do after being involved in a slip and fall accident. If you want to know more about your personal injury case in a free, confidential consultation, call the law offices of The Reiff Law Firm at (215) 709-6940 today.
What Constitutes a Slip and Fall Accident?
In order to understand what a slip and fall accident is, we need to talk about premises liability claims and their relationship with slip and fall accidents:
Slip and fall accidents are part of the field of law known as “premises liability.” In these claims, the owner is responsible for any injuries a person sustains on their property. The owner has an obligation of keeping his or her property hazard and danger-free at all times. Here, the “owner” refers to the possessor or the person who legally owns the land. This applies to residential property as well as public and private properties.
In most cases, premises liability claims are based on negligence from the owner. In order to prove the owner acted negligently, the injured person must prove the following:
- The owner owed the victim a duty of care.
- The owner breached that duty.
- The breach of duty caused harm.
- The harm caused by the breach resulted in damages.
As an example, imagine you were injured at a friend’s house party when you slipped in a puddle formed by a leaking pipe. The property owner, your friend, owed you a duty to warn you about the leak or repair the pipe and clean up the puddle. If the friend failed to do this, they breached the duty and caused your injury by allowing you to slip in it. Any injuries you faced, like head or back injuries, could result in damages like expensive medical bills. This would be the breakdown of your premises liability/slip and fall claim.
Common Causes of Slip & Fall Accidents
Slip and fall accidents can happen for numerous reasons. There are many conditions that can cause a person to slip or trip. Some of the most common causes of this type of accident include the following:
- Wet and slippery surfaces
- Uneven and cracked flooring
- Broken and uneven stairs
- Defective sidewalks
- Poor lighting in hallways
- Poor lighting in stairways
- And more
Common Slip and Fall Injuries
While the slip and fall may sound particularly serious, but in reality, these injuries can be quite traumatic. The most serious cases could even result in death. Some of the injuries a person can sustain in slip and fall accidents include, but are not limited to:
- Head and brain injuries (TBI)
- Neck injuries
- Spinal cord injuries
- Back injuries
- Broken hips
- Knee and heel injuries
- Elbow and shoulder injuries
While some injuries caused by this type of accident can heal fairly quickly, others may last for a long time. This could mean losing time from work, lost wages, costly medical treatment, pain, and suffering. All of these damages could be recovered in a personal injury claim. Holding the negligent person liable for your injuries could entitle you to receive compensation.
However, these types of claims are bound to a very strict legal time limit. This is commonly known as the “statute of limitations.” This refers to the time you have to file your claim in a timely manner. If you fail to file your claim on time, you would be left out of options to pursue compensation for your injuries. The statute of limitations for personal injury in PA is 2 years from the date of the accident.
Slip and Fall Injury Accident Lawyers Offering Free Consultations in Hazleton
You should always take your slip and fall incident seriously, especially if it was due to another person’s negligence. While 2 years seem like a long time to file a personal injury claim, you should always act quickly. Keep in mind many procedures which could affect your case could take some time, such as the collection of evidence. If you have been involved in a slip and fall accident, do not wait and call the law offices of The Reiff Law Firm at (215) 709-6940 today. Our Hazleton slip and fall lawyers offer free, confidential consultations.
