The Role of Negligence in Slip and Fall Accidents
Even though slip and fall accidents are, unfortunately, quite common it doesn't make them less benign. In fact, some of them can even be so severe and serious that they can significantly affect a person's life.
And this doesn’t refer solely to the physical aspect of someone’s well-being, but to the emotional one too. In most cases, these accidents are a direct result of somebody’s accident, meaning that a particular individual failed to provide a certain level of care that they were supposed to.
If you have gone through a slip and fall accident, then it’s of huge importance to prove negligence if you want to be fairly compensated. If you would like to dive deeper into this topic, then stay tuned to find out more!
Who You Can Rely On In These Types Of Situations?
If you’ve been seriously injured in a slip and fall accident, then you are most likely dealing with numerous financial issues, starting from lost wages, medical expenses, and many other expenses that came unexpectedly.
But is there anyone who you can turn to, who can smooth things out just a little bit? One of the best things that you can do is to turn to a slip-and-fall lawyer. These are people who will not only allow you to focus on your recovery but will fight for your rights and compensation as well!
At the end of the day, why would you pay out of your own pocket for all the upcoming expenses, if someone else's negligence led to these injuries? If you share this opinion, then the only thing that's left is to put your trust in the hands of an experienced slip-and-fall attorney.
Now, you are probably wondering, where you can find an advocate who's going to not only provide you with legal advice but also with the proper support. Numerous online reports have shown that solicitors who've dealt with resbalones y caidas en miami (slip and falls in Miami) have the highest success rates. Therefore, if you reside in this city, or at least anywhere near it, then be sure to conduct thorough research in order to find a legal expert who’s going to ensure you have the best outcome.
The Four Elements Of Negligence
As stated in the beginning, in these instances, it’s essential to prove negligence if you want to get fair compensation. Now, in order to do this, you are supposed to have a solid understanding of the four elements of negligence.
If you aren’t familiar with them, don’t worry, because, below, they’ll be thoroughly explained. So what are you supposed to know about them?
Duty of care – For starters, it’s important to establish that the defendant, which could be the owner of a specific property, or occupier owed a legal duty to the plaintiff. Basically, the law demands property owners to properly maintain their premises and to ensure they are in safe condition free from dangers of any type. The point is that every person should be able to go to the premises without worrying that something is going to jeopardize their safety.
Breach of duty – Now, that the duty has been fortified, the next thing that's supposed to be done is to prove that the defendant breached it. This means that they violated the duty of care. In a nutshell, they didn't do what was necessary to create a safe environment. For example, if the owner of the store knew that their floor was slippery and didn't do anything about it, or at least put up a warning sign, then it's crystal clear that they breached their duty of care to the consumers.
Causation – In order to prove this, you need to establish a direct connection between the incident that happened and the breach of duty (this refers to the defendant). Basically, you need to prove that the accident has happened precisely due to the defendant's negligence. Frequently, this can be pretty challenging because the victim (along with their lawyer) needs to prove that a specific hazardous condition caused the slip-and-fall accident.
Damages – The last step as far as this is concerned, is to prove that the plaintiff suffered severe injuries and/or damages because the defendant was neglectful. These damages include both physical (like broken bones) and mental (such as stress, anxiety, fear, etc.). Aside from that, there are financial losses that must also be included, like lost wages, medical bills, and others.
Every single one of these elements plays a major role when it comes to establishing negligence in these types of cases. If a plaintiff isn’t capable of proving all of these components, then that’s going to drastically weaken their case.
In these types of situations, the only thing that they can do is to seek assistance from a slip-and-fall attorney.
Different Kinds Of Visitors
The law lines up visitors and guests to a person’s property into three categories. Generally speaking, property owners are obligated to safeguard only licensees and invitees. In instances, where someone illegally enters someone’s house and then sustains an injury, then there’s no point in pursuing a slip-and-fall claim.
When it comes to invitees, this term refers to the customers and patrons, and one of the main responsibilities of every business owner is to do whatever is in their power to make sure their premises are safe, otherwise, they'll be held accountable for any accident on their premises.
And then there are licensees, who represent visitors or guests to a particular property, normally for non-commercial purposes. Just like invitees, licensees must also be protected at the property, at any given moment.
If by any chance, a slip and fall accident happens, the licensee has every right to file a lawsuit against the property owner. When it comes to trespassers, they can also pursue a claim if they experience a slip and fall accident, however, it's going to be pretty hard to prove anything because the property owner wasn't aware of any hazards since they didn't willingly allow any visitors.
It’s safe to say that negligence plays an integral role in proving if an occupier or property owner was responsible for a specific slip-and-fall accident on their premises. If you weren’t very familiar with how things work as far as this is concerned, we hope that this article made things a bit clearer.
