Factors Leading to Outdoor Slip and Fall Accidents
In both theory and in practice, slip and fall accidents are some of the most common personal injury accidents in the world of personal injury lawsuits. Interestingly enough, when you ask the majority of everyday individuals what they know about personal injury lawsuits, they may spout out jokes about second-rate lawyers camping out at emergency rooms or chasing down an ambulance that just picked up an elderly woman who had a slip and fall accident in the unmentionables section at JC Penney. But truth be told – personal injury lawyers are some of the most important lawyers in the business and dollar for dollar, the best of them earn their clients more money than almost any field of the legal business. As a personal injury attorney in Ruskin, sure Ms. Anissa Morris, Esq. definitely deals with her fair share of senior citizens, however, the vast majority of her cases involve those anywhere from 24 to 50 years old, and quite often there is some type of worker’s compensation issue involved as they are on the clock while it happens – definitely a by product of south Florida, for most of us no matter where we are or what we are doing, we are usually on the clock! Quite often, slip and falls happen at the workplace as well – so it definitely makes sense. However, slip and falls are caused by a number of different factors depending where you are located. With the help of a top slip and fall lawyer Ruskin legal expert Ms. Anissa Morris, Esq. will be helping us today, as we will be taking a further look at the outdoor slip and fall – being fairly common throughout the country, as well as Florida, it is a vital topic to discuss.
While this is true for most places other than the Southeast, part of the US, where Florida is located – in reality, the people of Florida, Atlanta, Orlando and a few other major cities around this part of the US have seen some fairly decent snowfalls, mixed with sleep, hail, and even some icy streets. During the winter months there is definitely an increase in children and pedestrians slip and fall cases, especially on icy sidewalks or paths. This is even more common as many Floridians have no clue how to drive or even walk around in the snow. In addition, other situations like careless maintenance at a supermarket can cause shoppers to slip and fall in an aisle. At the same time, slip and fall accidents are often relatively straightforward in terms of culpability: the finger can be pointed at the owner or possessor of the building or land, while he may not have mopped the floor himself and forgot to place the “wet floor” sign, at the end of the day if the slip and fall accident occurred on any part of the property owner or the property possessor’s premises, and he or she failed to take appropriate precautions or correct a problem that led to the accident, the owner or possessor can usually be held legally responsible for your injuries. What follows are some examples of common conditions that lead to slip and fall accidents outdoors, and the rules regarding a property owner’s duties with respect to those conditions. As a slip and fall lawyer Ruskin attorney Ms. Morris must be able to prove the owners liability in any slip and fall case – in such cases its simple, as he is the owner of the building or property.
Inclement Weather Conditions
In some states that are known for big snow storms and weather problems, the law doesn’t require a property owner/possessor to remove ice or snow that accumulates outside his or her building as the result of weather. However, this isn’t the case in other states like New York as the sidewalks of NYC are the store owners responsibility for the most part. In addition, technically the state of Florida hasn’t really gotten around to actually putting together concrete snow removal laws as of yet, as it is quite rare here. In fact, snow and ice are so rare it was quite an odd scene seeing most individuals, who have never owned a pair of snow boots in their lives, try to walk around a storefront to grab a bagel, get a haircut, or even visit their doctor’s office – as they simply do not have any clue of how to handle the ice – creating quite the scary scene for the owners as they had no clue if a lawsuit was coming their way or not. As a personal injury attorney in Ruskin, Ms. Morris is generally on the side of the victims or the injured parties, however, Florida’s confusing laws make it difficult for her to take on cases involving snowfall. However,there are some stipulations – if conditions on the property cause an unnatural accumulation of ice or snow, the property owner may be liable for slip and fall accidents, such as when:
· Ice accumulates on the roof, then melts and drips off because of a clogged drain, then refreezes on the ground;
· The slopping surface of a parking lot causes melting ice to form puddles, and then refreeze into ice patches.
In addition, if a property owner/possessor elects to provide snow or ice removal, he must do so in an way that avoids any negligent acts or activities.
Poor Lighting
One issue in parts of Florida that are somewhat more rural and swampier is the lack of amenities outside one’s home, as the land is still relatively uninhabited by anyone except the alligators and whatever their next meal will be! For Ms. Morris, a slip and fall lawyer Ruskin has a lot of similarities to the more rural parts of Florida as Ruskin is a fairly small town founded on the banks of the Little Manatee River over 100 years ago. And as a result, even in Ruskin that’s far more populated than the middle of a swamp – there are issues with poor lighting. Without being able to fully see in the dark victims can trip on uneven curbs, fall down stairs, trip over objects in the street – a property owner/possessor may be liable if he or she knew or should have known of the poor lighting and failed to remedy the situation.
Parking Areas
The owner of a parking lot is responsible for any and all of its maintenance – as it must be reasonably safe for people in order for them to use it. This means repaving the ground and filling and patching cracks in the ground. Also, there cannot be any sudden increases or decrease in height or ground level – any changes must be very gradual and take place over time, slowly, foot by foot.
For more information on other areas, or specifics about your business or your sidewalk or parking lot issues, be sure to contact Spinner Law Firm today.