It’s an unfortunate fact that hazards such as spilled liquids can cause walking surfaces to be slippery. Damaged or irregular sidewalks and floors can cause trips. If you don’t notice the hazard, the results can be painful, even life changing. When that happens, your actions during the first few minutes can have a lasting impact – either for good, or for bad.
Right now, BEFORE an accident happens, you should know what to do. If you slip and fall, you’ll probably be embarrassed, and your first thought may be to “jump up and act casual”. Resist the urge! You already fell. Anybody who saw it – already saw it. Scrambling to your feet could aggravate an injury, while giving eyewitnesses the impression that you aren’t hurt. If you are, in fact, injured, such consequences may complicate your situation.
If you fall, force yourself to relax and just lie there for a couple of minutes. Concentrate on what you feel. Do you have any sharp pains, such as might be caused by a broken bone, a dislocated joint, a sprain, or a spinal injury? Does anything feel numb or tingly?
If you feel any of those sensations, force yourself to lie still, and ask someone to get help. If there is nobody close, call out for help. Insist on having medical professionals evaluate and assist you, rather than just relying on whoever first shows up. If there is any possibility that you have injuries, go to the emergency room or to an urgent care facility. Ask for – and be sure to keep – documentation of their diagnosis and any treatment that they may supply or prescribe.
If you don’t feel any ominous pains or sensations, carefully pick yourself up, taking care to avoid falling again. Be sure to immediately tell a responsible person what happened, and ask them to protect others from having a similar accident. Ask them to document what happened, so that the landowner or leaseholder is aware of the hazard and of your possible injuries.
Even if you don’t think you were seriously injured, remember that sometimes symptoms don’t manifest until some time has passed. If anyone saw the accident, try to get their names and contact information. If you do have significant injuries, you may need to call on witnesses to back up your account of what happened. (As a minimum, get names and phone numbers and/or addresses.) Do this as soon as possible, because witnesses will quickly drift away when the crisis is over.
Try to get pictures showing several views of the scene, with the clearest possible view of the spill, irregularity, or whatever caused your fall, and any other relevant visible evidence.
Property owners and leaseholders are responsible for the safety of their visitors / customers. If you are injured, the responsible party should offer to pay for any medical costs. If they don’t offer, you should remind them that they do have a responsibility, and tell them that you expect them to pay for any such costs.
Keep a good attorney’s name and contact information handy. You never know when you may need it – and if you wait until the pressure is on, you may not make the best choice. You won’t find better representation than the experienced attorneys of The Law Offices of Jacob Emrani.
Call us any time at 800-314-3299.
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