800-818-1818
A slip and fall accident can happen anywhere in Fresno. If you suffer severe injuries because of someone else’s negligence, you have the right to compensation from the person or entity responsible. An experienced Fresno slip and fall attorney can help you in seeking justice. They will work to recover compensation for your losses, including medical bills, lost wages, and pain and suffering via a slip and fall claim.
If you or a loved one were injured in a slip and fall accident, call the Fresno personal injury lawyers at The Dominguez Firm for a free consultation today at (800) 818-1818.
What Are the Most Common Slip and Fall Injuries?
When we think of serious accident injuries, we often envision car accidents, but injuries caused by slip and fall and trip and fall accidents can also be serious. For the elderly, these accidents can prove deadly and are the leading cause of non-medical deaths in the U.S.
A single fall can leave victims with:
- Traumatic brain injuries (TBIs)
- Back injuries, including spinal cord injuries or spinal cord damage
- Broken bones
- Soft tissue injuries
What Causes Fall Incidents in Fresno?
Falls happen for many reasons; however, certain conditions increase the chances of it happening. Understanding these causes helps establish liability (blame) when filing a personal injury claim.
Wet and Slippery Surfaces
Wet floors without warning signs are a danger to people in grocery stores and restaurants. A slippery floor is a hazard that property owners must address promptly. After rainstorms, outdoor walkways can also become slippery when water pools on pavement.
Poor Lighting Conditions
Poor lighting in parking structures and stairwells creates serious risks. Dim lighting makes it difficult to see obstacles or changes in elevation, especially in the evening hours.
Broken and Damaged Walking Surfaces
Broken stairs, cracked sidewalks, and uneven flooring pose trip and fall accident risks. Torn carpeting and loose floor mats catch feet. Potholes in parking lots create tripping hazards that can cause serious injuries.
Where Do Most Fresno Fall Accidents Happen?
Slip and fall accidents can happen on any type of property. However, certain locations in Fresno experience more fall incidents than others.
Shopping Centers and Retail Locations
Fashion Fair Mall, Manchester Center and Fig Garden Village all attract heavy foot traffic that wears down flooring and creates hazards.
Entertainment and Dining Venues
The Saroyan Theatre, downtown nightlife district, and local restaurants all present unique dangers. Spilled drinks, greasy kitchen floors, and wet bathroom surfaces make these venues prime locations for slip and fall accidents.
Residential Properties
Private property, including apartment buildings, can have broken handrails, inadequate lighting in common areas, or poorly maintained walkways.
How Does a Fresno Personal Injury Attorney Prove a Fresno Slip and Fall Claim?
Proving a fall claim requires showing the property owner or management company was negligent. A personal injury attorney helps establish the key elements of your California slip and fall accident claim.
Duty of Care
The property owner owed you a duty to maintain safe premises. This applies to customers, tenants, and lawful visitors. California premises liability laws, which regulate property safety, make this clear.
Breach of Duty
The owner breached that duty by allowing a dangerous condition to exist. They knew about broken stairs but failed to repair them. Or they should have known about a hazard through reasonable inspection.
Causation and Damages
The dangerous condition caused your fall. Your injuries resulted directly from that incident. Medical records, medical documentation, and witness statements help prove this connection in your personal injury claim.
A fall attorney gathers evidence including photos of the accident scene, surveillance footage, maintenance records showing the property owner knew about the hazard, witness statements, medical records, and expert testimony.
The responsible party might be a store owner, landlord, property management company, or government entity. Insurers representing these owners will try to minimize your fall claim or deny it entirely.
What Should You Do After a Fresno Slip and Fall?
The steps you take immediately after have a major impact on your ability to recover compensation.
- Seek medical attention even if your fall injuries seem minor. Some injuries, like whiplash, don’t manifest immediately. Medical records from your initial treatment are crucial evidence.
- Notify the property owner, manager, or staff about your slip and fall. Ask them to complete an incident report. Request a copy.
- Take photos of the hazard that caused your fall. Photograph the area, including any warning signs or lack thereof. Get contact information from anyone who witnessed the incident.
- Keep the clothes and shoes you were wearing. Don’t clean them. They may help prove how the accident occurred. Save all medical bills and documentation related to your fall.
- Reach out to a Fresno personal injury lawyer immediately. An experienced slip and fall lawyer protects your legal options and deals with insurance companies on your behalf.
- Do not give recorded statements to insurance adjusters! No law requires you to do so. They’re trying to get you to say something that hurts your slip-and-fall case. Instead, let your accident injury lawyer handle all communications with insurance representatives for you.
Who Is Liable for Your Fresno Slip and Fall Injuries?
Determining liability in slip and fall cases depends on several factors. California law holds property owners responsible when their negligence causes injuries.
The owner owed you a duty of care to maintain safe premises. They breached that duty by creating a dangerous condition, knowing about it, and failing to fix it, or failing to discover it through reasonable inspection.
Owners can’t be held liable for obvious hazards that any reasonable person would notice and avoid. But hidden dangers like broken stairs are different.
Liability extends beyond individual owners. Businesses, property management companies, landlords, and government entities can all be held responsible. Sometimes multiple negligent parties share liability for your fall injuries.
A personal injury law firm investigates who should be held accountable. This might include the store where you fell, the cleaning company that left floors wet, or the contractor who improperly repaired stairs.
What Compensation Can Your Fall Attorney Recover For Your Fresno Slip and Fall Case?
Injury victims in slip and fall cases can recover financial compensation, legally known as damages for their losses. The compensation you receive depends largely on the severity of your injuries.
Economic Damages
These damages cover your financial losses, which are mostly medical expenses.
- Emergency room cost
- Surgery
- Hospitalization
- Prescriptions
- Physical therapists
- Long-term care
- Home modifications
- Lost income, including loss of wages from being unable to work
- Property damage. For example, a laptop that broke due to your fall
Your personal injury attorney works with medical experts to calculate future damages. If the slip and fall victim suffered permanent injuries, your damages will include the cost of long-term care. They also factor in lost income if the person cannot return to work.
Non-Economic Damages
These compensate you for your emotional losses. Physical pain and suffering, anxiety, loss of enjoyment of life, and emotional distress all fall under this category.
California law does not cap non-economic damages in personal injury cases. An experienced attorney knows how to present evidence showing how your injuries affect every aspect of your life.
Insurance companies often make low initial offers, especially if you don’t have legal representation. They’re not doing it to help you. They want you to accept because you’re in financial straits or don’t fully realize the seriousness of your slip and fall injuries. A slip and fall attorney negotiates for the amount you deserve, not what the insurance companies want to pay.
How Long Do You Have to File a Fresno Fall Accident Claim?
There are strict deadlines for filing personal injury claims. You generally have two years from the date of your fall on someone else’s property to file a lawsuit. If your fall occurred on government property, you only have six months to take legal action. Missing these deadlines can prevent you from seeking justice. In short, it’s critical you contact a Fresno personal injury lawyer quickly.
Besides the legal deadline, there are other reasons why you should hire an experienced attorney immediately:
- Evidence disappears
- Surveillance footage gets recorded over
- Witnesses forget details, or you lose contact with them
- Owners repair dangerous conditions
The sooner you start your fall claim, the better the chance of obtaining the maximum compensation you’re entitled to.
Why Choose a Fresno Fall Lawyer?
California slip and fall cases involve complex laws. Property owners and their insurance companies have teams of attorneys protecting their best interests. You need a personal injury attorney to ensure you receive fair compensation for all sustained damages from your accident.
A Fresno accident attorney with a deep understanding of the nuances involved in handling a slip and fall claim can work to secure you compensation for your medical expenses, lost wages and other damages due to your accident.
Also, if you suffered extensive injuries, the last thing you need is to deal with an accident injury claim. Accident victims have enough to contend with without adding adjusters, deadlines and stacks of legal documents too. Instead, hire a law firm with extensive experience handling fall claims. Let them deal with your lawsuit, so you can concentrate on getting better.
The Fresno Personal Injury Lawyers at The Dominguez Firm Can Help
Don’t let a property owner’s negligence steal your future. Contact the Fresno personal injury attorneys at The Dominguez Firm today. You deserve maximum compensation for your injuries, and our experienced personal injury lawyers will fight for your rights.
Free Consultation Available
The Dominguez Firm has helped clients in Fresno, injured in all types of accidents including car accidents, truck accidents and slip and fall accidents. In our 30+ years of serving the community, our firm has secured sizable financial awards in settlements and jury verdicts. These results have allowed our clients to put their lives back together again effectively. Let us do the same for you.
Our consultations are always free: (800) 818-1818.
My experience was good. They made sure to kept me in the loop and made sure to let me know what was going on the whole time. My mom has used other attorneys and this experience was beyond better. I would definitely recommend them!
— Ashley Magana
The attorneys were always available and answered my questions. I would recommend them to anyone. Zoe is the best!
— Janet Salazar
My experience with The Dominguez Firm and the attorneys was really good. They were very informative and always returned my calls.
— Jocelyn Gonzalez