It might be funny to see a character in a movie or TV show slip and fall but is not funny for approximately 68,000 of your fellow Florida residents who are hospitalized each year for injuries suffered in slip-and-fall accidents. For older adults, falls cause devastating injuries, including about 95 percent of all hip fractures and more brain injuries than other types of mishaps.
At the Law Offices of David M. Benenfeld, P.A., we take slip & fall accidents seriously because we know how they affect the lives of victims and their families. The average cost of the medical care for a Florida fall victim is more than $52,000. You could be entitled to compensation if your slip-and-fall injury is the result of negligence on the part of another party. Our lawyer spends time reviewing the circumstances of your fall with you to identify the parties responsible for causing your injury and to plan the best course of action to aggressively pursue the compensation you need and deserve.
Leading causes of slip-and-fall accidents
A slip and fall could happen wherever there is a substance or hazardous condition on the floor or the surface you are walking on that causes you to lose your balance and fall. Office buildings, private homes, retail stores, and other public areas could become the scene of a slip-and-fall accident.
Dangerous or hazardous conditions that could cause you to slip and fall include:
- Broken or uneven stairs
- Loose or missing handrails where there are steps
- Wet floors
- Uneven sidewalks and floors
- Torn or loose carpeting and rugs
- Debris, food and other substances on floor surfaces
- Wires, displays and other objects left in areas where people walk
- Cracked and loose floor tiles
- Broken pavement and concrete walkways and parking areas
The list of potential hazards you could be exposed to when on property belonging to another party, is endless. For example, tiles used around a swimming pool might look attractive, but they could cause a serious injury if they become slippery when wet. Even something as ordinary as grocery shopping poses a risk of serious injury if store personnel fail to clean up spills and anything else on the floor that could cause you to slip and fall.
Devastating injuries from a slip & fall
Some people are lucky and end up with nothing more than a great deal of embarrassment and perhaps some sore muscles from a slip and fall. Unfortunately, many people who slip and fall suffer serious injuries that sometimes prove to be life-threatening.
Common injuries associated with slip-and-fall accidents include the following:
- Hip fractures
- Leg and ankle fractures
- Wrist, arm, and shoulder fractures
- Spine and back injuries
- Head trauma, including concussions and traumatic brain injury
- Lacerations and contusions
- Sprains and strains
The serious injuries from a slip and fall frequently require hospitalization, rehabilitation and physical therapy, and an extended recovery period. Lost income, combined with medical expenses and other bills piling up, can take a toll on a slip and fall victim. Legal representation by a skilled and knowledgeable West Palm Beach slip and fall attorney is critical. We aggressively fight the property owners and insurance companies to get you the maximum compensation available under the law.
Holding Property Owners Accountable
Holding property owners and managers responsible, when their negligence in maintaining and caring for their properties causes you harm, requires the assistance of an expert with knowledge of Florida law and extensive experience handling slip and fall claims in West Palm Beach, FL. State law makes property owners liable when they have knowledge of a dangerous condition and fail to take reasonable measures to correct or remove it.
Proving a property owner had actual knowledge of a hazard that caused you to slip and fall could be difficult, depending upon the available evidence. However, our innovative approach to slip and fall cases includes the use of constructive knowledge. This knowledge allows us to hold property owners responsible, when the condition that caused you to slip and fall existed long enough, that an owner exercising ordinary care should have discovered and corrected it. Constructive knowledge is also useful when the condition is one that has occurred before, and reoccurs on such a regular enough basis, that the owner should have been aware of the hazard.
Call our West Palm Beach Slip & Fall Lawyer Today
An experienced West Palm Beach slip & fall lawyer at the Law Offices of David M. Benenfeld, P.A., applies his knowledge of the law to identify the party responsible for causing your slip-and-fall injuries and develops the best strategy to obtain the compensation you deserve. Call us now at (866) 943-5766, or complete the online contact form to schedule a free consultation.
