Does my Slip and Fall Accident Qualify for a Lawsuit?

Many people have fallen at some point in their lives. In many cases, these accidents are blamed on being careless, not paying attention, or just being clumsy. However, sometimes these accidents are caused by a dangerous issue on someone’s property.

However, just because you have gotten injured on someone else’s property, it does not mean the owner is liable for your injuries. But, in some cases, private and commercial property owners can be held responsible for your accident. Therefore, to determine whether your accident qualifies for a lawsuit, you should consult a slip and fall lawyer at Salamati Law in Los Angeles. Moreover, you can decide whether your accident qualifies for a lawsuit based on the following information:

Was there a hazardous condition?

To hold the property owner liable for your accident, there has to be a hazardous condition that makes you lose your balance and get hurt. Examples of dangerous conditions include wet and slippery floors, accumulation of ice and snow, potholes, debris, and a badly damaged sidewalk. The landowner must also have caused the unsafe condition or allowed it to continue without rectifying the issue to be held accountable.

Did the property owner know about it?

You could hold a property owner liable if they knew about the unsafe condition and failed to rectify it in time. In addition, you need to determine whether the dangerous condition existed long enough for a reasonable landowner to act by eliminating the hazard and whether the property owner conducted routine checking for potential dangers on the property.

This is because property owners are entitled to a reasonable amount of time to find out and rectify the risky condition. However, determining whether the property owner knew about the dangerous condition is hard to prove.

If you tripped on business property, the business may fill out an incident report for you. The incident report can identify the cause of your accident and provide insight into how long the landowner or property owner knew about the hazardous condition that caused your accident.

Additionally, there may be a surveillance video that can show the period the hazardous condition existed before your accident. Therefore, your lawyer can use incident reports and surveillance footage to show that the owner knew or should have known about the dangerous condition.

Did they post a warning?

If the property owner knows about a dangerous hazard on their property but they cannot rectify it on time, they are usually required to put clear signage to warn visitors about the danger. Therefore, if there was no signage warning you about the imminent danger on the premises, then you may seek compensation.

Conclusion

In conclusion, your accident can qualify for a lawsuit if you were injured by a dangerous condition on the property, which the property owner knew about or should have known about and failed to rectify within a reasonable amount of time. Moreover, plaintiffs must consider whether there was reasonable justification for creating the dangerous condition and if the justification existed at the time of your accident.