Slip-and-fall or trip-and-fall accidents may occur anytime, anywhere. Many of them tend to result in serious injuries that require long-term treatment, care and rehabilitation. If you or a loved one has been injured in a slip-and-fall or trip-and-fall accident, you may be able to seek compensation for the injuries, damages and losses you sustained.
Three Top Causes of Slip-Trip-and-Fall Accidents
There are a number of reasons why slip-and-fall or trip-and-fall accidents occur. 
Here are the three most common causes of these types of accidents:
1. Wet and Uneven Floors: The poor or unsafe conditions of floors are among the leading causes of slip-trip-and-fall accidents. Such conditions may include uneven flooring, pavement and surfaces that lack clear warning signs. Loose flooring or rugs or mats (including those on stairs) may also pose a tripping hazard. One of the most common examples of slip-and-fall accidents is when people slip on wet or recently polished floors.
Property owners and/or managers are required to put up signs or cones to warn people about spills or recently waxed floors that may be extremely slippery. Bulging, worn or torn carpeting is another common example when it comes to trip-and-fall accidents. Examples of uneven floors include potholes in parking lots.
Property owners and managers have a responsibility to use reasonable care to eliminate these types of hazards and reduce the risk of accidents by mopping up wet floors right away or posting warning signs; using non-skid materials on flooring when appropriate; de-icing walkways and removing snow in a timely manner; and soaking up excess moisture on floors with mats, among other actions.
2. Situational Conditions: Here are some of the most common examples of situation dependent slip-and-fall or trip-and-fall hazards:
• Debris or trash on the floor.
• Cords or other obstacles across a walkway.
• Poor lighting that makes it difficult for someone to see where they are going.
• Poor flooring transitions.
To prevent such dangers, property owners or managers should remove all obstacles from walkways and provide proper lighting.
3. Unsafe stairways: When stairways are unsafe, it may lead to a slip-and-fall or trip-and-fall accident. Examples of hazardous situations on stairs include lack of proper handrails, worn or warped steps, debris or trash on stairs, urine on stairs that hasn’t been promptly cleaned up, etc. Landlords and property managers should always make sure that stairways are safe and free of debris and other dangerous conditions. For example, if a stair is broken, it should be repaired right away. If that’s not possible, they should provide warning signs, and/or put barriers around the area.
Contacting an Experienced Lawyer
Slip-and-fall and trip-and-fall accidents have the potential to result in life-changing injuries and long-term medical expenses that may not be covered by health insurance policies. If you were involved in a slip-and-fall or a trip-and-fall accident as a result of someone else’s negligence (carelessness), please remember that you have rights. Some of the damages that victims of such accidents can claim include, but are not limited to, medical expenses, loss of wages and benefits, cost of hospitalization, surgery, physical therapy, past and future pain and suffering, permanent injury, etc.
The experienced New York personal injury attorneys with the Law Offices of Kenneth A. Wilhelm can help you better understand your legal rights and options and also fight hard to recover just compensation for you. For over 49 years, our skilled attorneys have established a proven track record of helping injured victims.
Our law firm recovered $1,700,000 for a woman who slipped and fell and received no hospital or medical treatment for one month after the accident. Our law firm also recently recovered $5,600,000 for a bicyclist who was hit by a van, and $2,550,000 for another victim of a truck accident, and $3,000,000 for a pedestrian who was hit by a car, and the full $1,000,000 insurance policy for a pedestrian who was hit by a truck, and $4,625,000 for a driver who was in a car and was hit by a van, and $2,500,000 for a man who fell through an improperly secured hole. Also, one of our clients obtained a verdict for $43,940,000 and another of our clients got a verdict for $23,500,000, both in medical malpractice cases.
Please contact us TOLL FREE 24 hours a day, 7 days a week at 1-800-WORK-4-YOU (1-800-967-5496). WE CAN EVEN COME TO YOU. There is no attorneys’ fee unless we recover money for you. We can also help with personal injury and medical malpractice cases in New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, or Florida. If you have been seriously injured in any of the 50 U.S. states, please call us and we will try to help you with your case.
Other TOLL FREE phone numbers for us are:
1-800-RADIO-LAW, 1-888-WYPADEK, OR 1-800-LAS-LEYES
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