A slip and fall accident can either be classified as a negligence case or a premises liability case in Tampa. Many times a slip and fall accident is simply a person slipped and fell on something that was negligently left out or on something that was negligently maintained.

Anything that is negligently left around or not maintained properly that causes a person to slip and fall and be injured can lead to a suit for legal compensation for the injured party.

Common Scenarios

One of the most common scenarios in a slip and fall accident is something spills in a retail establishment or building and is mopped up with no signs warning the ground may be slippery so somebody slip and falls.

Other common cases occur when something is leaking, such as an air conditioner, or construction debris was left on the ground that is not properly picked up, cleaned up, or roped off and a patron walks and either slips, trips, or falls on it and is injured.

Common Injuries

Slip and fall cases have a lot of neck and back injuries. They also have a lot of soft tissue knee injuries as well as a lot of head injuries. Additionally, people can suffer concussions or traumatic brain injuries in bad slip and fall cases if their head comes in contact with the concrete or hard flooring that they have slipped and fallen on.

Initial Steps

Surveillance is always important to slip and fall cases, a person can see what exactly the injured person slipped and fell on. Through surveillance, a person can usually see how long the substance has been on the floor that caused the slip and fall. A person can also see what the controller or owner of the property did to prevent people from slipping and falling in that area so surveillance is important.

Witnesses are important for the same reason as well as the substance itself if a person can either have a picture of the slippery substance or piece of the debris.To actually have that as a piece of evidence in the case is also important at the beginning of the case.

Attorney’s Approach

Our firm’s attorneys typically approach to slip and fall cases early in order to identify the witnesses or any surveillance that may be available in the case. The attorney will interview all the witnesses and get their statements recorded.

The next step is to put together demand package proving who is liable and why they are liable. Following the letter, if a fair offer is not given, generally the lawyer willl file the lawsuit right away.

Some owners or operators do not take the slip and fall cases seriously because many lawyers will abandon the case if they do not get a good offer pretty soon. We show right off the bat that we are serious and will file the case early to indicate that the issue and suit are serious.