How to Prove Negligence in a Slip-and-Fall Case

To win a slip-and-fall accident case, you must prove that you were hurt because of someone else’s negligence – but what, exactly, does that mean? There are specific things you must show to prove negligence, and you will need evidence to do it.

MattLaw Car Accident and Personal Injury Lawyers has stood up for injury victims in Florida for more than 35 years. Our slip and fall accident lawyers know what it takes to prove negligence. Keep reading to learn more about building these types of cases.

What does it mean to be negligent?

In the legal world, negligence is defined as the failure to act with a reasonable level of care. But how do you know what is reasonable? Typically, this is judged by what most others would do in the same situation. In some instances, negligence is also a failure to act, such as a failure to fix a property condition that could cause someone to fall.

Legal elements of negligence

To establish negligence for a liability insurance claim or premises liability lawsuit, you will have to prove four basic legal elements. If you slipped on a transitory foreign substance in a business establishment (water on the floor), Florida law also requires you to prove that the business had actual or constructive knowledge of the dangerous condition and should have taken action to remedy it.

The property owner owed you a duty of care

The duty of care is the responsibility we all have to act reasonably in any given situation to avoid hurting others. In premises liability cases, owners and managers have a duty of care to use reasonable care to keep the property they control reasonably safe for visitors. Generally, this means:

1. Performing routine property inspections and maintenance
2. Fixing known issues on the property within a reasonable amount of time
3. Warning patrons about issues that could harm them

The duty of care can also be informed by applicable law. When it comes to slip and fall cases, violations of applicable federal, state, and local laws, building codes, and ordinances may be evidence of negligence.

The property owner breached the duty of care

Property owners breach the duty of care when they do not maintain their property or make repairs. Unsafe conditions that could cause a slip, trip, and fall include potholes, wet or slippery floors, broken flooring, or unsecured cords and cables. These are just a few examples of problems property owners should address.

Additionally, when property owners know about an issue but cannot fix it immediately, they should warn people. Say a hotel has structural problems with a room’s balcony. It could take several months to fix, and that may be reasonable. But in the meantime, the hotel should not rent that room, or at the very least, should warn guests and block off the balcony.

The breach led to your injury

It is not enough to show that you fell on someone else’s property. To prove negligence for a slip and fall, you must show that your accident was a direct result of a hazardous condition and the property owner’s failure to take care of it. You do this using evidence of the property condition and the owner’s actions surrounding it.

Your injury caused you losses

If you fall and skin your knee, you probably won’t have to go to the doctor or miss work. And it probably is not going to cause you too much mental or emotional distress. Therefore, it is not an injury that has caused you any significant losses.

You cannot successfully pursue a claim or lawsuit against a property owner if you have not suffered damages and are not eligible for compensation. The cost to bring a claim far exceeds the value of what you might recover.

Evidence you might use to support a slip and fall claim

There are many pieces of evidence you will need to prove the four elements of negligence discussed above. Evidence may include:

• Photos or videos of the hazard that caused your fall (take pictures)
• Surveillance video of your accident
• Eyewitness testimony from people who saw you fall (get the names and contact information of any witnesses)
• Testimony from people familiar with the property and its condition
• Property maintenance records
• Your medical records
• Your medical bills
• Estimates, receipts, and bills showing your financial losses
• Expert testimony

Common defenses against property owner liability

When you can prove a property owner was negligent, it means they are liable for your accident and must pay your damages. However, there are some common defenses property owners can use to reduce their liability, even when you can prove that a property hazard caused your injury.

First, a property owner might accuse you of not being legally on their premises, i.e., trespassing. This is because owners owe a duty of care to people they expressly invite onto their property or whose permission to be there is implied, such as patrons of a business. But they do not owe this same responsibility to trespassers.

Second, an owner might try to blame your fall on your own actions. Maybe they claim you were on a part of the property you should not have been, or were looking at your phone instead of where you were walking. This is because if you are partly at fault, it could reduce the amount of money they owe you, or they might not have to pay at all.

Here is how it works: Florida follows a modified comparative negligence system. When a jury hears your case, it will decide whether to assign you fault for your accident. If it does, the amount of your fault reduces your compensation accordingly. If you have $100,000 in damages and 20 percent fault, you receive $80,000. But if you are more than 50 percent at fault, you cannot recover anything.

Most slip and fall cases settle outside court, but insurance companies know this law and will use it when deciding how much to offer you.

Should you hire an injury lawyer?

As you can see, there is a lot that goes into building a slip and fall case. You will need to collect evidence, show the insurance company that you have losses you should get compensation for, and possibly defend yourself against efforts to blame you for your fall. Our personal injury lawyers can help with all of this and more.

Our firm provides aggressive legal representation for injured people in our communities, and we get results. We have won over $250 million for our clients, and our case record includes 100 jury trials. While past results can’t predict future outcomes, they do show how hard we work for our clients. We can guide you through every stage of your claim, offering the practical support you need to help you prove negligence.

Contact MattLaw Car Accident and Personal Injury Lawyers about your slip and fall

MattLaw Car Accident and Personal Injury Lawyers can help you fight for compensation for your medical bills, lost wages, and pain and suffering. We have offices in Tampa and St. Pete Beach. Contact us today for a free consultation.