Many people in the United States are injured in slip-and-fall accidents every year. In 2022, 8.5 million people were injured badly enough in falls to require emergency medical treatment.

Slipping and falling can be a very scary experience. It’s made even more stressful when you need compensation to cover the cost of your medical bills and lost wages, and you’re not sure who, if anyone, is liable for your injuries.

Consult with one of our slip-and-fall lawyers as soon as possible after a fall. We can help you identify those responsible for your pain and financial damages, and help you get the compensation you deserve.

Examples of Slip-and-Fall Accidents

A slip-and-fall accident can happen anywhere, including sidewalks, staircases, and parking lots. These accidents often occur for the following reasons:

  • Ice and snow in parking lots and near entrances at hotels and businesses.
  • Excessive wax on floors in stores, malls, and restaurants.
  • Broken stairs, crumbling cement steps, and worn-out wooden steps.
  • Missing or broken handrails on a stairway.
  • Poorly maintained parking lots and pavements marked by cracks, potholes, and other trip hazards.
  • Private or public sidewalks that are damaged, uneven, or raised.
  • Water, grease, or other liquids on floors and aisles in businesses such as stores and restaurants.
  • Poor lighting that makes it difficult to see where you are walking.

Understanding Liability in a Slip-and-Fall Accident

If someone is injured on private property due to a dangerous condition, the property owner may be liable for recoverable damages through their insurance coverage. If you want your claim to succeed, you will need to prove that the property owner is at fault.

Under premises liability law, an injury is eligible for compensation if it results from a dangerous or defective condition existing on someone’s property. In Michigan and other states, owners have a legal duty to maintain the premises in good condition.

In Michigan, the comparative fault statute plays a role in your claim. Under this statute, if you are partially at fault for your own fall, then your economic damages are reduced by the same percentage.

For example, in the case of a person who deliberately walks on a visibly icy sidewalk outside of a store and falls, the insurance company may argue the injured person was 40% at fault and, if successful, the store must pay only 60% of the total damages.

How Do I Prove Negligence in a Slip-and-Fall Accident?

If someone is injured in a slip-and-fall accident in Michigan due to a property owner’s negligence, they must file before the statute of limitations expires.

The plaintiff must prove negligence. Proving negligence requires the following elements:

  • Duty of Care: The property owner owed a duty of care to others. It is their responsibility to keep the property safe
  • Breach of Duty: The property owner breached their duty, such as by failing to maintain the walkway leading to their business’s entrance. This also includes not putting up warning signs of hazards around the property, such as wet floor signs when there is a spill or the floor has been recently mopped
  • Proximate Cause: A dangerous condition was on the property due to the owner’s negligence. Your injuries directly resulted from the owner’s negligence
  • Damages: You sustained physical injuries due to the property owner’s negligence and the dangerous condition on the property. Damages can also include medical bills, lost wages, and damaged personal property, such as a cell phone that was broken in the fall

Gathering Evidence

The experienced lawyers at Fieger Law can help you gather evidence to prove that the property owners knew about the unsafe conditions that caused your injury and did nothing to correct them.

Evidence can be provided by witness testimonies of your accident and photographs of the hazard, among other credible sources. Your medical records and bills will also be invaluable in proving your case if you suffered an injury due to these unsafe property conditions.

Fieger Law Can Represent You

Serious slip-and-fall accidents can be devastating, which is why you should always seek legal representation. The premises liability lawyers at Fieger Law are ready to help you if you have been hurt in a slip-and-fall accident.

For more than 70 years, our legal team has provided legal guidance and counsel to slip-and-fall victims across the United States and understands premises liability.

For quality legal representation to help you get the compensation you deserve, contact Fieger Law to schedule your free consultation.

Originally published November 29, 2021.