Slip and fall accidents account for hundreds of thousands of hospital emergency visits each year. These accidents are responsible for causing a wide range of physical injuries, ranging from mild bruises, skin contusions, and bleeding to concussions, bone fractures, intracranial hemorrhages, and even death.
Stairway slip and fall accidents are some of the most common instances of slip and fall injuries in the United States. Unsafe conditions on or around stairwells cause thousands of individuals to slip and fall down the stairs, resulting in injuries that cause significant physical and emotional trauma to the victims and leave them with hundreds of thousands of dollars in medical bills.
Causes of Stairway Slips and Falls
Stairway slips and falls result from a wide range of unsafe conditions, including slippery surfaces, torn or loose carpeting, broken stairs, environmental buildup (rain, snow, ice), building code violations (lack of handrails, uneven stair height/depth), poor lighting, and more.
In many cases, it is the absence of warning signs that causes unsuspecting individuals to trip and fall due to safety hazards around stairways. If you or your loved one got injured in such an accident due to the negligence of the property owner, you can sue them for damages to obtain financial compensation.
Determining Fault in Stairway Slips and Falls
More often than not, stairway slips and falls result from the negligence of property owners. The Premises Liability Law governs all such personal injury cases and outlines the responsibility of property owners to maintain safe conditions around their establishment. Any violation of this duty of care owed to guests or visitors of the property can cause them to be held liable for any slip and fall accident.
Depending on your state laws, your case might be subjected to comparative or contributory negligence rules. Even if you shared part of the fault for the accident, you might still be able to seek damages through a lawsuit if you live in a state with comparative negligence. In such cases, the potential compensation gets reduced according to the percentage of your fault.
On the contrary, if you live in a state that follows the rule of contributory negligence, you might not be able to obtain compensation if you were at all found to be responsible for the accident. In either case, obtaining successful financial compensation for your damages requires proof of negligence on part of the property owner or staff.
By filing a lawsuit against the parties responsible for your slip and fall accident, you might be able to recover the costs of medical or surgical treatments, lost wages, costs of physical or occupational therapy, pain, and suffering, disability, and/or punitive damages.
Enlisting Professional Legal Help
If you or your loved one got injured in a stairway slip and fall accident at someone else’s property, you should consult a competent personal injury lawyer immediately. An experienced lawyer will not only help you file the lawsuit and navigate the complexities of the legal system, but also assist in gathering necessary evidence and preparing relevant paperwork to strengthen your case.
