Proving Fault In A Slip And Fall Accident

Every year thousands of people of are injured from slip and fall accidents. However, a big number of these people find it hard to prove who is responsible for the slip and fall accident.

How do you prove fault in such accidents?

Owner negligence

There are certain elements that must hold true for the property owner to be held responsible for the slip and fall accident. These elements include:

• The hazard must have been created by an employee or the owner of the premises.
• The property owner must have had prior knowledge of the hazardous surface
• The property owner should have known about the dangerous surface if they were taking good care of the property

For the claim to hold, one of the elements above must apply.

In most cases, such liabilities are determined through common sense as it is not always clear-cut. This means that the judge and the jury will determine if the property owner was responsible for taking care of the property and if they managed to enforce safety measures while at it.

However, the judge and the jury will also take into account that the victim could have been careless and if they didn’t try to avoid the hazard, then the property owner is not liable for the accident.

Carelessness

When it comes to accidents that involve slip and fall, the rule of comparative negligence applies. This means that if by any chance you contributed to the accident ( for instance, you were busy talking or texting on your phone instead of paying attention to wherever you were headed), your monetary claims could significantly lessen depending on the percentage set by the jury or the judge.

There are several questions that you should ask yourself to try and figure out if the judge will rule on comparative negligence. These questions include:

• Did you have a reason for being on the property and was it legitimate?
• Would a responsible person have noticed and tried to avoid the dangerous situation? Would they have managed to lessen the chance of a slip and fall accident?
• Was there a barrier or any form of warning?
• Could you have been engaging in any activities that could have contributed to you slipping and falling?

If you can prove that you were not negligent and the property owner is liable for your injuries to an insurance adjuster, you might get a settlement. If you’re looking for a personal injury attorney, contact the team at Welcenbach Law Offices today.