Any type of physical accident poses the threat of serious injury, especially if it is a slip, trip and fall situation. Accidents of this kind can cause muscle or bone damage, and the recovery period can take many weeks — not to mention the hospital bills, which can rise into the thousands of dollars.
If the accident wasn’t your fault but was the result of some type of negligence, then you have a good shot at receiving compensation. Poorly salted sidewalks, bad construction, slippery floors, and cluttered stairways can all be categorized as negligence. If your slip, trip, or fall injury was from one of these situations or something similar, then read on so you can better understand your rights and the path you need to take to be compensated for your loss of time and money.
What Are “SLIP, TRIP AND FALL” Accidents?
As the name suggests, these are personal injury accidents that occur when somebody either slips, trips or falls and can happen as a result of hazardous conditions on someone else’s property.
These accidents can occur in a number of different ways, but some instances are more common than others. You can injure yourself when exiting a building, walking on a slippery sidewalk, walking on uneven floors or being unable to see in poor lighting. Causes of slips and falls could be bad weather, liquid spills, design flaws, or a foreign object that shouldn’t be on a walking surface.
When Is Another Party Responsible For An Accident?
If you just happened to slip and fall, it doesn’t mean the property owner is immediately at fault and responsible for your injury. There are a lot of other variables that go into deciding who is at fault. A lawyer must prove that there were dangerous conditions on the surface or in the area where you slipped. Additionally, a party must prove that the property owner was aware of the problem and chose to ignore it.
What To Do After A Slip And Fall Accident In Spokane
When it comes to the aftermath of a slip and fall accident, it can be a little complex from a legal standpoint. Make sure that you are well prepared for the upcoming legal processes by doing these three things immediately after an accident:
1. Report
Anybody who was involved in a slip and fall accident should report the accident to the individual in charge as soon as possible. You should not provide them with a detailed statement at this point – you can inform them of the accident, but do not give them a ton of details until after you have spoken with a personal injury attorney. An attorney can help guide you in the right direction.
2. Record
After you have reported the accident to the proper people, you need to detail what happened and take notes on the circumstances that led to the accident. You need these details so you can provide them to your attorney when you meet with him or her. Write down the date and time along with the location and names of witnesses that might have seen what happened. Additionally, you should get the name of the individual in charge, the conditions of the area where you fell, what shoes you were wearing and any other details you might deem necessary. If possible, keep any clothes or items that led to the fall as those can be used later on as evidence.
3. Seek Medical Treatment Immediately
Lastly, seek medical treatment for your condition following your fall. An emergency room doctor can examine you and diagnose an injury. Having a breadcrumb trail of medical reports increases the validity of your slip, trip, and fall case. An injury is no fun, but a lack of treatment by a medical professional may negate your case entirely. If you decide to wait for medical care, then it may come back to bite you later as a judge might rule that there is not enough correlation between your injuries and the accident. Don’t delay your medical care!
We’re Here to Help You
If you or your loved one have suffered an injury in a slip and fall accident, immediately begin the process of working with a personal injury attorney. Victims who choose to work with an attorney generally receive far better compensation for their injuries compared to people attempting to handle a case on their own. At Russell & Hill, PLLC, we strive to make sure that our clients receive the best possible compensation you deserve.
At Russell and Hill, PLLC, we don’t require any upfront payment, period. You have no reason to worry about piling up attorney’s fees; our payment model comes from the contingency of your winning case. We earn our money as a percentage of the insurance payment you receive from the settlement of your case, essentially meaning your legal bill never affects your wallet.
For more information about our personal injury services for slip, trip and fall accidents in Spokane, don’t hesitate to contact us. Schedule a free consultation with us so we can learn the details of your case and explain your options. Call today, or fill out our online form to start the process. We look forward to hearing from you!
In the United States, more than 9 million people end up in emergency rooms with slip and fall-related injuries every year, while about half of all accidental deaths in the home are caused by falls. The statistics are quite startling, aren’t they?
But did you know that you may be eligible to pursue a personal injury claim and recover damages suffered by your slip and fall accident? A slip and fall accident can happen to anyone, especially in Spokane once the wet weather starts. Not all victims of slip and falls are eligible to seek compensation for their injury, but many of them are.
Today, our Spokane slip and fall attorney from Russell & Hill, PLLC, is going to explain everything you need to know about pursuing compensation for a slip and fall injury in Washington state.
How Much Time Do You Have to File a Slip and Fall Claim in Washington State?
Regardless of whether your slip and fall accident was caused by wet floors, spilled liquids, or other hazards on someone else’s property, you need to file a premises liability claim to recover damages before the statute of limitations expires.
Our experienced slip and fall lawyer in Spokane explains that the time limit for bringing a slip and fall-related claim in Washington state is three years from the date of your injury. However, depending on who owns or occupies the property where your slip and fall accident occurred, there may be other time limits imposed.
Are You Eligible to Recover Damages After a Slip and Fall Accident?
As we have mentioned earlier, not everyone is entitled to financial compensation after getting injured in a slip and fall accident. To be eligible to recover damages for your injury, your Spokane slip and fall lawyer will have to prove that the property owner or occupier owed you a duty of care and that duty of care was breached due to the failure to remedy an unreasonably dangerous condition on the property.
One of the first factors that will be considered when determining whether or not you are entitled to compensation after a slip and fall accident is where your injury occurred:
- At home. If a slip and fall accident occurred at home or on your own property, you will most likely be able to recover damages through your own insurance coverage. If the injury was caused by a defective or faulty product, you might be entitled to pursue a product liability claim against the manufacturer, distributor, seller, and other parties.
- At work. Most of the time, when an employee gets injured in the course of employment, he or she qualifies for workers’ compensation benefits. However, you may want to consult with an experienced slip and fall attorney in Spokane or elsewhere in Washington state to determine whether or not you qualify for workers’ comp.
- On other private or public properties. If your slip and fall injury occurred on the property owned, occupied, rented, or managed by someone else, you are most likely entitled to pursue a premises liability claim against the owner or occupier of that property. The same applies to public and government properties (do note that the statute of limitations and other rules for claims against government entities differ from those that apply to claims against private entities).
What Evidence is Needed for a Slip and Fall Claim?
Some of you might be wondering what pieces of evidence are necessary to strengthen a slip and fall claim. Our Spokane slip and fall accident attorney outlines the most important pieces of evidence that should be collected in the legal process:
- Photos and videos at the scene of the accident
- Surveillance footage
- Witness statements
- Other pieces of evidence that demonstrate the other party’s fault
Consult with our premises liability lawyers at Russell & Hill, PLLC, to determine liability in your case, collect evidence, and calculate how much your slip and fall claim is worth. Call our offices at 800-529-0842 or 509-204-9701 to schedule a free consultation.
206-880-7703 800-529-0842 