What To Do After A Slip And Fall
Ohh the weather outside is frightful. And as the ice begins to accumulate, injuries can occur on improperly maintained sidewalks or by tripping over bunched up carpets. Many stores and businesses put out extra carpets and mats in their building lobbies to soak up the snow and ice debris that is tracked inside. These carpets are often improperly maintained, and they have the potential to bunch up and cause injury to unsuspecting patrons. If you are injured in a slip and fall accident, there are certain things that you should do to assist in the investigation of your case.
Seek medical attention immediately. When a slip and fall or a tripping accident occurs, your first reaction is often to get up and “walk it off.” You may feel jittery and your extremities may buzz. This is normal and is due to a release of adrenaline. During the fall, you may have experienced significant injury, including broken bones or internal injuries. Due to the release of adrenaline, you may not realize the extent of your injury immediately. This is why medical attention is so important. A medical professional’s assessment of your injury is necessary to evaluate the extent of your injury and to prevent further medical complications.
Locate what caused you to fall. Slip and fall injuries occur for a reason. Often in the winter, a fall occurs when tripping over a carpet or slipping on ice. Inspect the area where you fell, and write down a description of your fall as soon as possible.
Take pictures. Take a lot of pictures from many different angles. And from many different distances. If possible, add time and date stamps to your pictures. You never know what angle may assist an attorney in proving your case. You also never know what may be moved, fixed, or changed after the owner of the property is alerted to your injury.
Identify potential witnesses. Ask those around you if they saw the accident occur. Take down their names, addresses and phone numbers and provide that information to your attorney. Your attorney will be able to follow up with those witnesses and subpoena their testimony if needed.
Follow protocol. Many big box stores like Wal-Mart and Target have defined procedures to report an accident. Follow these procedures. Notify a store employee of your injury immediately and fill out any necessary paperwork as soon as possible.
Contact a slip and fall attorney. Contacting an attorney at the earliest possible moment allows you to get the maximum money for your injury. If a slip and fall occurs, you may be contacted by the property’s insurance adjuster who is seeking to settle the case for a small amount of money. Do not discuss the facts of the case with them. The adjuster often uses these initial phone calls to devalue a case and seek to change the narrative of the events. Contact an attorney to handle the adjusters at the earliest possible moment. Philadelphia slip and fall attorney Michael F. Niznik works on a contingent basis. That means that he does not charge any money to take on a slip and fall case. He obtains his fee through any settlement with the property owner’s insurance company. If our firm does not recover money for you, we do not get paid.
If you or someone your know is the victim of a slip and fall accident, or a tripping accident, contact Philadelphia personal injury lawyer Michael F. Niznik for a free consultation. We can be reached 24/7 at 267-589-0601 or online at www.NiznikLaw.com.
