Tampa Bay Injury Attorney Blog
Who is responsible for your injury after a slip and fall or trip and fall accident? That depends. There are numerous factors when it comes to determining fault, but most importantly is where you fell, and whether it is public property, a business, or a residence.
Premises liability law establishes when residential and business owners are responsible for injuries that occur on their property. If you fall in a store or on some area of their property, like the parking lot, then the store could be liable for your injury if the injury was caused through its negligence. On that same note, if you are a guest in someone’s home and you suffer an injury as a result of the owner’s negligence, the homeowner may be liable.
How To Prove Your Claim
In order to be successful in a slip and fall or trip and fall case, you must show that there was a dangerous condition that the property owner was aware of or should have been aware of. The owner failing to remedy the dangerous condition caused you harm and it was foreseeable that someone could get hurt from it. In other words, there has to be a negligent party. If you just happened to slip, trip or fall for no apparent reason, then there may not be a responsible party other than yourself, which obviously creates an impossible burden for your claim. In the end, our job as lawyers is to investigate not only the mechanism of injury, learn how it could be avoided and determine if an insurance policy was paid for with the intent of compensating you for your injuries. Unfortunately, all the “good hands” in the world won’t start dialing your house most likely unless we call them first.
However, if you were harmed due to a real hazard, who you name in your lawsuit will depend on the details of your slip, trip or fall. If you were hurt at a retail store in the mall, there may be multiple parties, including the store, mall management, a security company, and possibly other entities.
When you fall at a residential property, the liable party is usually the property owner. If you are hurt in a rental and the tenant is responsible for handling repairs, then that person could be to blame.
When it comes to injuries on municipal properties, sidewalks and parks, it can be tricky to establish fault, but there is sometimes someone to blame for it, possible even the city or state.
Call A Tampa Bay Premises Liability Lawyer at Whittel & Melton – 727-823-0000
If you have suffered a slip, trip or fall injury, call a Tampa Bay Slip, Trip and Fall Accident Lawyer at Whittel & Melton at 727-823-0000 or contact us online for the legal help you need. Your consultation costs nothing and you can learn whether you have a claim.