The most common causes of slip and fall accidents in Nashville are wet or slippery floors in a store where a worker has mopped the floor and did not place a sign notifying customers. In apartment complexes, injuries occur involving damaged stairs that are in need of repair. There are inadequate lighting cases where people are unable to see down some steps or stairways at night and trip over an obstacle that they cannot see. Injuries often occur in damaged parking lots where the person slips/trips and falls due to a big hole in a parking lot. If you have sustained an injury due to another’s negligence, it may be critical to contact a skilled slip and fall lawyer.
Defining Duty of CareDuty of care is all about control and knowledge. The person who is going to be liable against slip and fall cases in Nashville will be the person who owns the property. If there is a maintenance company, sometimes it may be brought into the case. The injured person also has a duty to be careful and watch where they are going. A jury will look at all those people together.
Certain cases have multiple defendants such as the owner of the property, the maintenance company, and possibly third-party vendors. If an electrician is doing some work on the property and leaves a big mess, the injured person slips and falls or trips over equipment, they may be responsible, even more so than the owner of the property or a maintenance company at the property.
What Requirements Must be Met to Ensure Safety?Nashville requires, through the Laws in the State of Tennessee, a Reasonable Owner Standard. That means that a property owner has a duty to provide a safe place for any visitors on their property. There are building codes in Nashville that will establish premises to be built in a certain way in an effort to ensure that the property is safe.
To recover compensation through a claim, or lawsuit, you will need to demonstrate negligence. As a Nashville slip and fall lawyer, we know of many behaviors that may be considered negligent, including:
If a property owner or manager knew about a potential hazard, but failed to address it or post warnings about it, they may be liable for any injuries that resulted because of their actions.
Typical Slip and Fall InjuriesElderly people are more susceptible to sustain a fracture; leg fractures, hip fractures, and wrist fractures caused by automatically putting their hands out to try and break their fall. They can also fall backward and hit their head causing brain injuries or damages. Those are probably the most common injuries in slip and fall cases in Tennessee.
There is a point in the case where the parties will try to resolve or settle before a doctor can assess the injury and be certain about its impact. The doctor can decide that in the future, the injured person may need additional treatment such as surgery. With this information, the attorney will be able to obtain money for those future medical expenses.
Understanding the Statute of LimitationsThe Statute of Limitations for Nashville slip and fall accident claims is one year. There are occasional exceptions to that such as an injured minor. In that case, that Statute of Limitations is tolled. If the injured person has a mental disability but has the capacity to bring a lawsuit, the Statute of Limitations can be tolled.
What You Should Do After a Slip and FallIf you have been injured in a slip and fall accident, there are steps that you should take as soon as possible:
Proving negligence in a car accident case may be relatively easy; however, slip and fall cases are often more complicated. This is because a Nashville slip and fall lawyer will need to prove the defendant knew a danger or hazard existed, but didn’t do anything about it. Proving this can be difficult which is why you should have a good slip and fall lawyer on your side. If you have been injured in a slip and fall accident, please call The Higgins Firm to explore your legal options. Call 800.705.2121.
The insurance company has a legal team. You should too.
