Slip and Fall: No Wet Floor Sign

Premises liability is a negligence-related case that argues that a property manager or owner has a legal responsibility to you to maintain a safe premise. Business owners, property managers, and even your landlord have to make sure that their premises are relatively safe for visitors on the property. If there is a hazard that the owner could have reasonably known about or did know about but failed to correct or post a warning, such as a wet floor sign, that person could be named in a premises liability lawsuit if someone gets hurt on the premises. 

It is not always the case that you have to prove that the owner of the property knew about the obstacle directly. If you can show that there was a reasonable expectation that they would be aware of the hazard and failed to review this and remove it or post warning signs, you can still likely pursue a liability case against that company. It is hard to navigate this process on your own and figure out your legal rights, but a premises liability case with a slip and fall no wet floor sign lawyer is your best chance for getting compensation.

There are many different injuries that can occur in a slip and fall accident case. This can include broken bones, fractures, sprains, lacerations, concussions, and more. You may have multiple injuries at once and may not notice the signs and symptoms of these immediately, but you could uncover them in the hours or days following the accident. Continue to attend all of your medical appointments and take notes about how your condition is affecting your life. 

If you intend to hold the responsible parties accountable, do not let the other side argue that your slip and fall injuries are not serious. It is very possible that you may find it difficult or impossible to go to work or even to enjoy some of the activities that were commonplace for you prior to the accident. As a slip and fall from no wet floor lawyer can tell you, you have legal recourse as a victim of a premises liability accident, but you need to take action quickly. The right lawyer can help you gather evidence, including materials like photos, videos, and statements from eyewitnesses. There's a good chance that you may not have this material with you at the time, but being able to demonstrate that no sign was present and that there was a clear hazard that a reasonable person would have been injured by are essential for making your injury claim successful.

There are some circumstances when a property manager or property owner is not able to immediately address the concerns of slip and fall injuries on their premises. There may be a hazard, such as a broken floorboard or a wet floor that they cannot clean off right away. In these circumstances, however, it is imperative that they use signage to warn others about the hazards that are present. For this reason, if there was no wet floor sign present at the site of your injury and you sustained serious and painful medical conditions as a result, you need to make the basis of your case about the fact that not only did the hazard exist but that the owner took no necessary steps to warn you about the precaution. You've probably seen wet floor signs all over supermarkets and other places where liquids can pose a reasonable fall risk. 

The purpose of these is to get your attention and help you steer clear of the hazard. Most people are not looking at the floor with each step that they take and, because of the reasonable expectation of safety on premises that they have, would not anticipate that the floor is wet. If you end up dealing with injuries from a slip and fall because of no wet floor sign, however, you need to point out the fact that the property owner did not take any additional steps to keep people on the property safe when a hazard occurred. 

Even notifying an employee to come to the scene of the wet floor and block it off from other people potentially getting hurt could be a step in the right direction towards preventing injuries, but if this didn't happen and caused you to get seriously hurt, especially if someone else knew about or reported the wet floor scenario and the owner did not take any necessary steps to inform you about this hazard, you may be able to file a premises liability claim.

Even placing a wet floor sign around an obstacle is not enough to protect a property owner from all liability. A wet floor sign is designed to notify people about the presence of a temporary hazard, but this does not absolve the property owner, manager, or even an employee from cleaning up the hazard itself. If you are hurt because the wet floor sign was obscurely placed somewhere or because it was removed before the danger was eliminated, you may still be able to file for compensation. 

There are many other ways that you may be seriously injured on someone else's property. This can include broken carpets, poor lighting, snow and ice on sidewalks, lack of handrails on staircases, and so many more. If you have been injured in an apartment that you are renting an apartment/condo/home or while visiting a business property, you may need to consult with an experienced premises liability lawyer about your eligibility to file a claim. 

One of the biggest challenges in a slip-and-fall claim is that you fall on a premise belonging to someone else. This means that the other party usually calls the shots and determines what happens immediately after the accident, such as whisking you away from the scene of the incident where you might have been able to take photos or videos or even get contact information for eyewitnesses. 

The owner of the store or location may also pressure you to state what happened or to sign paperwork. The owner might even argue that there was a wet floor sign at the time you fell even though you know this is not true. You need someone advocating for your side of the story. This can be tricky without having an experienced premises liability lawyer look over your specific case. If you're struggling to get evidence, make sure you talk through all your options with a qualified premises liability attorney immediately. 

Each slip and fall case is unique, and yet there are many common injuries and damages connected to trip and fall or slip and fall accidents. Many people's shoes slip on a wet liquid, and this causes them to trip and fall backwards. Depending on how you fall, you may strike other objects or hit your head on the floor or other objects on the way down. This is your highest chance of serious injury in a slip and fall accident with no wet floor sign present. 

After you get screened by a physician and diagnosed with medical conditions, you may have ongoing expenses such as physical rehabilitation, therapy, casts, pain medications, and other ongoing treatment. Furthermore, your injury may make it hard for you to go back to work so you can also recover compensation for lost wages in your premises liability lawsuit. The sooner you speak to a premises liability attorney the better. 

An attorney will help you to uncover the potentially liable parties in your lawsuit to gather the evidence needed to argue that no wet floor sign was present and that placing one in plain sight would have been a reasonable expectation that the property owner or manager should have done and that you have suffered devastating injuries because of an entirely preventable incident. 

If a slippery floor should have been blocked off or otherwise cleaned up immediately to prevent your injuries but didn't happen, you are not alone. The lawyers at Morgan & Morgan are here to help you build a compelling and strong case for recovery of compensation.

Contact us today for a free, no-obligation case evaluation to get started.