Slip and fall accidents are those where a hazardous condition causes a person to fall and get injured. If you tripped, slipped, or fell on someone else’s property due to their negligence or carelessness, contact our Indianapolis slip and fall lawyers to find out your legal options.
Our Indianapolis personal injury lawyers at Rowe & Hamilton understand how challenging and disruptive a slip and fall injury can be to your life. That’s why we always strive to recover maximum compensation for all our clients.
Call us today at 317-482-7888 to schedule your free, no-obligation consultation and case evaluation.
What Are the Most Common Slip and Fall Accidents?
Property managers, owners, and occupiers owe visitors a duty of care that includes protecting them from slip and trip hazards. The property manager, owner, or occupier should first inspect the area before a visitor arrives on the property for anything likely to cause someone to slip or trip.
Failure to take this basic precaution could make the property manager, owner, or occupier liable if a visitor trips, slips, and suffers an injury. Slip and fall cases are among the most common premises liability cases.
Here are some of the most common slip and fall accidents in Indianapolis, IN.
Weather Conditions
Poor weather conditions often result in slip and fall accidents. Ice or snow that isn’t salted and/or shoveled away from parking lots, sidewalks, or moisture on indoor floors that come from outdoors cause dangerous conditions for foot traffic.
Wet Floors
Property owners, managers, or occupiers must ensure that any wet floors are marked with clear warnings about the potential hazards, so visitors, guests, and customers don’t inadvertently wander onto the wet floors, staircases, or walkways.
Loose Cables
Loose wiring and cables in office buildings can create very dangerous trip hazards. Specifically, employers and office managers should always ensure that cables and cords are bundled safely and out of any walking path.
Structural Defects or Improper Maintenance/Upkeep
Broken staircases, malfunctioning escalators, broken floor tiles, potholes in parking lots/streets, or even torn carpeting are all examples of improper maintenance or structural defects that are also trip hazards.
Damaged Sidewalks
A cracked sidewalk is a dangerous hazard for pedestrians. If the damaged sidewalk pieces cause someone to trip, the liable party could be the local government entity in charge of maintaining it, which makes for a complicated case and requires an experienced slip and fall lawyer.
Dim Lighting
The risk of stumbling, tripping, or slipping increases when you walk through dimly lit areas such as hallways or walkways. It is due to this reason that property owners, managers, or occupiers should always keep all areas open to visitors or the public well lit.
Uneven Steps
The risers and treads of a set of stairs should be even and properly maintained. If the steps are uneven or damaged (including missing handrails) then a visitor could trip, fall, and suffer serious injuries due to the negligence of the property manager, owner, or occupier.
Debris
Debris on the floor can also cause people to slip and fall on certain surfaces. Property owners, managers, or occupiers should do everything possible to prevent and remove debris that could potentially cause slip and falls.
It is negligent for property owners not to place signs and/or restrict access to areas when hazardous conditions like any of the ones listed above exist.
How Can an Indianapolis Slip and Fall Attorney Help Me With My Case?
Slip and fall accident claims are a type of personal injury case whereby a person trips, slips, or falls on someone else’s property and suffers an injury from a hazardous condition. Slip and falls are by nature complicated cases with several elements that have to be proven with supporting evidence.
Due to this reason among others, consulting an Indianapolis slip and fall lawyer is critical in increasing your chances of being compensated for your injuries. Here are some of the ways that a slip and fall lawyer can help with your case.
Accident Investigation
The first thing your slip and fall lawyer will do is investigate the accident. Our lawyers do this by examining photos and video footage of the accident scene, obtaining a report of the accident, and speaking to relevant witnesses.
Identify the At-Fault Party
Our lawyers will then take a look at all the details of the accident to determine who bears liability or if you have a claim in which multiple parties share responsibility for the accident, which may further increase the compensation that you can recover.
Build Your Claim
One of the most time-consuming steps in the entire process is building your claim. Our lawyers must wait until you have finished treatment for your injuries before compiling a comprehensive report of your injuries. It’s a process that takes time, which is why you need to be patient.
Settlement Negotiation
Our lawyers will then send out a demand letter to the at-fault party’s insurance company once your injuries have been treated and medical records gathered. Negotiations will then begin, but if we cannot negotiate a fair settlement, then the only option will be to file a lawsuit.
Litigation
If settlement negotiations with the at-fault party’s insurance company fail, our slip and fall lawyers will take the matter to court. We will ensure that you comply with the applicable deadlines and take care of the paperwork. We will also represent your best interests to the court to increase the chances of recovering compensation.
If you have suffered a slip and fall accident on another person’s property in Indianapolis, you should consider getting in touch with the legal team at Rowe & Hamilton today at 317-482-7888. We know the exact steps to take to maximize the compensation you can recover and can help with every aspect of your case.
What Steps Can Be Taken to Help a Slip and Fall Case?
If you slip and fall in a public place, you can be your best advocate. The steps you take immediately after a slip and fall accident can have a significant impact on your claim. You might not necessarily be able to do everything listed below, but it’s in your best interest to take as many of the steps as possible.
Take All the Photos You Can at the Time
The accident scene will likely change after your fall since the property manager, owner, or occupier will likely correct the hazardous condition that led to your fall. That’s why you need to take all the photos you can at the time.
If you cannot take the pictures, ask someone to take them using your cell phone. It is also important to photograph any injuries that you sustain.
Report the Incident
No matter where the trip, slip, and fall accident happens – on a sidewalk, in a store, or even at a friend’s house – report it to a landlord, owner, or manager. Ensure that you get the details of the incident in writing. Ask the landlord, owner, or manager to make a written report and ask for a copy of the same before you leave.
Take Down the Names and Numbers of Witnesses
Eyewitnesses are your most valuable allies in a slip and fall claim. They can provide excellent information about the condition of the property before the fall and how the events unfolded. However, some witnesses may leave once other people arrive, which is why you should always strive to take down their names and numbers quickly.
Seek Medical Attention
You need to document your injuries if you plan to file a compensation claim. Even if you don’t go to the emergency room, it is still important to see your doctor as soon as possible after the slip and fall accident. You could be suffering from a brain injury or other injury you might not be aware of until a complete examination is done by a medical professional.
Don’t Make Statements About the Accident
Avoid saying anything at the scene of your slip and fall accident that’s likely to hurt your claim. Stating that you are fine or apologizing in any way for the accident may allow insurance companies as well as the defendants to claim that the slip and fall accident was actually entirely your fault and that you should not be compensated.
Consult Our Indianapolis Slip and Fall Lawyers
The property manager, owner, or occupier may tell you that they will take care of all your expenses associated with the slip and fall accidents, and they may actually be telling the truth. Still, it is important to consult with our experienced Indianapolis slip and fall lawyers at Rowe & Hamilton to ensure that you don’t forfeit any of your legal rights.
Call us at 317-482-7888 to schedule your free consultation.
How Can a Slip and Fall Case Be Proved?
A property manager, owner, or occupier is not automatically responsible for an Indianapolis, IN slip and fall accident simply because a person was injured on their property. The property manager, owner, or occupier must first be proven to be negligent.
The property manager, owner, or occupier will only be required to pay for damages and injuries if the injured person is able to prove the following.
- A dangerous or hazardous condition existed on the property.
- The property manager, owner, or occupier knew or should have reasonably known about the existence of the hazardous or dangerous condition.
- The injured victim wasn’t aware of the dangerous or hazardous condition since they either couldn’t see it in time or there were no signs posted.
- The property manager, owner, or occupier had a reasonable opportunity to correct or warn of the hazardous condition, which wasn’t obvious to the injured party at the time of the accident.
The key to a successful Indianapolis slip and fall case is proving how the actions or inactions of the property manager, owner, or occupier were directly responsible for the slip and fall accident along with the resulting injuries.
If you don’t have competent legal representation in your Indianapolis, IN slip and fall case, you are likely to experience difficulties in proving how you had no reasonable means to avoid the accident that resulted in your injuries.
Contact our experienced Indianapolis slip and fall lawyers at Rowe & Hamilton to get the help you need and the compensation you deserve. We have a professional team that’s eager to discuss the details of your case. Call us today at 317-482-7888 to schedule a free consultation.
How Is Liability Determined in an Indianapolis, IN Slip and Fall Case?
Property owners, managers, and occupiers (and their insurance companies) will often try to argue that the plaintiff’s own carelessness was a factor in the slip and fall accident. This is referred to as the comparative negligence defense.
Indiana law doesn’t entirely bar recovery if you were partly responsible for your injuries. The threshold for comparative negligence is set at 50 percent for plaintiffs to still be eligible for compensation. Unfortunately, your percentage of fault can limit recovery by a similar percentage. For example, if you are awarded $100,000 and are found to be 30% at fault, you would only receive $70,000.
During the process of filing a slip and fall accident injury claim, you may be asked questions such as:
- Did you have good reason to be on the property owner’s premises at the time of the accident?
- Did the property owner give a warning about the dangerous condition that led to your slip and fall accident?
- Were you involved in any activities that may have contributed to your slip and fall accident and the resulting injuries?
- Would a person of reasonable caution in the same situation have noticed and avoided the dangerous condition if he/she was not distracted?
Keep in mind that the above questions are usually asked by the defense in an attempt at getting you to admit that you played a role in the accident and the resulting injuries, which means that your compensation is reduced significantly. That’s why you need to hire a lawyer.
Proving liability in an Indianapolis slip and fall case is often complex without legal representation. Due to this reason, it’s in your best interest to work with our experienced lawyers at Rowe & Hamilton immediately following the accident.
Our experienced legal team will be prepared for the defense to argue that your negligence played a role in your slip and fall accident. We will assess the evidence, dispute allegations of partial fault, and pursue recovery for all your losses.
Call us today at 317-482-7888 to schedule a free consultation and case evaluation.
How Much Is My Slip and Fall Case Worth?
Settlement amounts can vary in slip and fall cases, which is why it is usually very difficult to determine exactly how much your slip and fall case is worth. Multiple factors are taken into consideration when determining how much a slip and fall case is worth, which include:
- Who was liable for the accident?
- What impact have the injuries had on your quality of life?
- How severe were your injuries?
The bottom line is that every case is different. What your slip and fall case is worth will depend on the specific details of your situation. The best way to know is by speaking to the experienced Indianapolis, IN slip and fall lawyers at Rowe & Hamilton.
Your lawyer will review the case details and determine what type of damages can be pursued.
Are There Any Time Limits for Filing a Slip and Fall Lawsuit?
Yes. The time limit for filing a slip and fall lawsuit is known as the statute of limitations. In Indiana, the statute of limitations for filing a personal injury lawsuit is 2 years from the day of the accident. If you don’t take legal action within the 2-year period, you forever lose the right to file a claim.
You must never wait for 2 years to file a claim. In fact, as soon as you’re treated for your injuries, arrange to speak with a slip and fall lawyer. Memories can fade. Evidence can get destroyed or lost. Put your case in the right lawyer’s hands without delay.
Were You the Victim of a Slip-and-Fall Injury in Indianapolis? We Can Help You Recover Compensation!
Slip and fall accidents happen unexpectedly and suffering an injury after a fall that wasn’t your fault can be overwhelming and stressful. If you or a loved one suffered injuries after a fall on someone else’s property, contact Rowe & Hamilton for a free case review.
Our team of Indianapolis slip and fall lawyers can review the details pertaining to your accident and inform you of your options. We understand the pain you are suffering and would like to help. Call our Indianapolis law firm today at 317-482-7888 to request your free consultation.
