Some of the most common injuries that are sustained by many are slip and fall accidents. Many don’t think about a slip and fall accident as being dangerous, but nearly 1 million emergency room visits are because of a slip and fall injury.
When someone suffers a slip and fall accident, an attorney
will usually evaluate the situation to determine causation and establish
liability.
Since premises liability and slip and fall claims involve complicated laws and legal issues, the first and most important step is to contact an experienced premises liability attorney. A thorough and quick investigation must be conducted and eyewitnesses must be contacted prior to any alteration or modification of the dangerous area. It is imperative that the owner be placed on notice to preserve all evidence. You should contact a lawyer as soon as is possible.
Also, there may be deadlines and statutes of limitations that may significantly affect your slip and fall case. You should not wait until the statute of limitations period is running out because your attorney may not have enough time to complete his investigation.
If you or someone you know has been injured in a slip-and-fall accident, you need to contact and experienced slip and fall lawyer in Arizona—as soon as possible. Evidence of the cause of the incident can be lost forever if it is not investigated soon after an accident. Whether its a defect on the floor or a liquid spill, an experienced slip and fall lawyer in Arizona can obtain the evidence of such condition. This is critical to proving that a landowner or occupier was negligent in preventing the injuries suffered.
Slip-and-fall accidents often result in serious injuries. The probability of having a slip-and-fall accident in a public place is far greater than at home. For one, a person is more likely to be distracted, and, more importantly, he or she may not be aware of the existing floor defects or surface liquid spills. The duty of businesses to exercise reasonable care to prevent exposing their customers to an unreasonable risk of injury is critical to reducing the number of slip-and-fall accidents.
Whether an owner or occupier of a land owes visitors a duty to protect them against dangers found on the land depends on the status of the visitor at the time. Generally speaking there are three (3) categories of visitors: 1) trespasser, 2) licensee or 3) invitee.
A trespasser is a person who enters a premises without permission.
A licensee is a person that enters on the land, with the landowners permission, for his or her own purpose or business. (A social guest is considered a licensee).
An invitee is someone that enters onto the premises in response to an invitation of the landowner.
There are two types of invitees:
(i) those who enter as members of the public for a purpose for which the land
is held open to the public (e.g., museums, airports), and (ii) those who enter
for a purpose connected with the business or other interests of the landowner
or occupier (e.g., store customers and people accompanying them, employees,
persons making deliveries). It is always important to know your rights and options if you have been injured in a slip and fall accident.
