Premises Liability FAQ

According to the CDC, more than 1 million people annually visit the emergency room because of a slip and fall accident. Unfortunately, it’s too easy to slip or trip on something and take a bad fall. In many cases, we find a hazardous condition that wasn’t easily noticeable to the person who fell. Some common causes of slip and fall accidents include: Wet floors. Spilled drinks, leaking roofs, water splashed on the floor from a fountain or pool, or simply mopping can all be hazards to an unsuspecting pedestrian. Any business or venue open to the public should train employees…

Sometimes, the landlord may be liable if they failed to maintain a “safe environment” for tenants and guests. However, this depends on several factors, including how and where you were injured. Is Your Slip and Fall Accident Due to Landlord Negligence? Under North Carolina law, landlords are liable in some situations where the injury is due to: Defects or defective equipment. Negligent acts. Negligent omission to act. However, this sometimes leads to questions about who provided the equipment or whether an act was negligent. Additionally, North Carolina uses contributory negligence statutes, which means that if the tenant is found to…

In most cases, yes. The National Safety Council (NSC) and Bureau of Labor Statistics report that slips, trips, and falls comprise the third most common category of workplace injury. (Previously, slips, trips, and falls had been the second most common injury category after overexertion, but the Covid-19 pandemic moved harmful substance exposure into first place. The slips, trips, and falls category has an injury rate of 21.7 per 10,000 full-time workers. These injuries are most likely to happen to employees who are 55 or older, but they can occur at any age. People who work in transportation, warehouses, or agriculture…

It varies widely depending on your damages. The more significant your injuries are, the more your case will generally be worth. You should expect to seek enough compensation for all your medical bills (current and future), as well as lost wages for any days you couldn’t work due to your injuries. You may also have additional damages, including: Lost earning potential. If your slip and fall caused a permanent condition that prevents you from returning to work, continuing to work full-time, or doing the same type of work, your lawyer could help you estimate the lost earning potential. Additional costs.…

The first question we usually ask is, “Where did the slip and fall accident occur?” This will help us determine whose insurance policy to make a claim against: If you suffered a slip-and-fall at a private residence, such as a friend’s house, their homeowner’s or renter’s insurance might cover your accident if you present evidence of negligence. If you had a slip-and-fall in a business or public venue, such as a shopping mall, store, amusement park, etc., a business liability policy is likely available. Again, you and your attorney must offer some evidence of negligence. (We will discuss examples of…

Proving fault is especially important in a North Carolina slip and fall accident because it is necessary to prove the other party is 100 percent at fault to collect damages. In many states, it’s only necessary to prove the other party is mostly at fault, but North Carolina has pure contributory negligence statutes. If the responsible party can prove that you were even 1 percent at fault, you cannot recover any damages. The first step is to determine how your accident happened. Sometimes this may seem obvious; sometimes, it isn’t clear what happened. After a fall, you may be disoriented…

Probably not, unless you have a third-party claim (we’ll discuss these later in the article). However, you should make a claim through the worker’s compensation system, which covers most workplace injuries. Worker’s compensation is intended to provide a no-fault way for workers to get medical care and some of their lost wages covered after a work-related accident. For this reason, you can’t sue your employer over an accident that is covered by worker’s compensation (with few exceptions). How Long Do I Have to Sue for Work-Related Injuries? You have two years to file a worker’s compensation claim in North Carolina,…