Owners frequently owe visitors to their properties a specific duty of care. The exact duty of care that the property owner owes to a visitor will depend on the visitor’s status or role on the property at a given time.
Property visitors who are business invitees—or business customers—deserve the highest duty of care. A business invitee is on the property to benefit the owner. Patrons at a bar, nightclub, or restaurant are business invitees of the premises owner.
Premises owners must warn about or repair known dangerous hazards on their premises. They must satisfy this duty within a reasonable time after they learn about the defect’.
Property owners must also inspect their properties regularly for unknown dangerous conditions—for the benefit of business invitees who might visit their property. When property owners fail to remedy a dangerous condition within a reasonable time, and a person suffers a slip and fall injury on the property, the property owner can be responsible.
In contrast to business invitees, licensees are social guests on a person’s property. An individual who visits someone’s home, for example, is generally a social guest or licensee. The duty of care that a premises owner owes to a licensee is much the same as they would owe to a business invitee. Specifically, property owners must warn about or remedy known dangerous hazards on their properties for the benefit of a licensee.
The final category of premises visitor is a trespasser. Generally speaking, property owners do not owe uninvited trespassers a legal duty of care. However, if the trespasser is a child or some other individual whom the property owner knows to visit the premises frequently (even without permission), the owner might still owe some duty of care.
If you suffered injuries in a slip and fall accident on someone else’s land, the skilled team of attorneys at Reiner, Slaughter & Frankel can investigate your fall and determine if the property owner violated their duty of care. If a violation occurs, we can begin the claims-filing process with the insurance company on your behalf and work to get you the compensation that you deserve for your injuries.
What Are Some Potential Slip and Fall Accident Injuries?
Victims of slip and fall accidents in the Chico area can suffer extremely serious personal injuries. This is especially true if the fall catches the person off guard and they strike the ground with a significant amount of force. The extent of an accident victim’s injuries will often depend on how they fell. Some common slip and fall accident injuries include traumatic head injuries, brain injuries, broken bones, soft tissue injuries, and spinal cord injuries.
If you suffered any of these injuries in a slip and fall accident that occurred on another person’s property, you should get treatment at an emergency room or urgent care center right away. Even if you don’t know the seriousness of your injuries, you should still seek prompt medical treatment.
A healthcare provider will ascertain your exact medical condition and can undertake the necessary imaging studies, such as brain scans, MRIs, and X-rays. If you require immediate medical treatment, the emergency room doctor can provide that treatment promptly. In addition, the provider can recommend an orthopedic doctor, physical therapist, or another specialist for additional medical follow-up.
Following a slip and fall incident, you should seek treatment as soon as possible after the incident. If you wait too long to get treatment for your injuries, the insurance company will likely become skeptical if you later file a personal injury claim. The adjuster assigned to your case may not believe that you were injured to the extent that you allege.
In addition, the adjuster might not believe that you took your injuries and medical treatment seriously after the accident. Once you begin treatment for your accident-related injuries, you should treat them continuously and refrain from any gaps in treatment. Moreover, do not discharge yourself but wait until a healthcare provider formally discharges you after you complete your treatment.
The knowledgeable Chico slip and fall attorneys at Reiner, Slaughter & Frankel can gather up all of your medical treatment records and bills to date, along with other important documents, to file your slip and fall claim.
Once you have completed all of your accident-related medical treatment, we can submit a demand package to the insurance company on your behalf and work to pursue favorable compensation in your case.
Filing an Insurance Claim After a Slip and Fall Accident
Filing an insurance claim after a Chico slip and fall accident is a multi-step process. First of all, your lawyer will prepare a settlement demand letter. The demand letter typically makes a monetary demand for settlement within the available insurance policy limits.
In addition to the demand letter, your lawyer can submit additional pieces of documentation that will help the assigned adjuster evaluate your claim. Important documents and slip and fall accident cases include eyewitness reports, victim impact statements, incident reports that the accident victim prepared, copies of all related medical records and bills, and lost wage documentation from the accident victim’s employer.
Once the insurance company adjuster receives and reviews all of this important documentation, they might offer to resolve the claim through settlement. If they deny fault for the accident, or if they do not offer a sufficient amount of money to compensate the accident victim, then the lawyer may file a lawsuit in the court system.
Even after the litigation process begins, the parties can still settle their case. If the parties continue through litigation, they will engage in a process known as discovery, where they will exchange documents and the answers to written questions.
After litigation, the parties may decide to take the case to a jury trial, where the jury will decide all of the disputed issues. Alternative dispute resolution mechanisms, like mediation and binding arbitration, might also be available.
The skilled team of Chico slip and fall attorneys at Reiner, Slaughter & Frankel can help you decide on the best way to proceed with your case. Whatever you choose, you can rest assured that our legal team will be by your side every step of the way advocating for you and protecting your legal interests.
Call a Skilled Chico Slip and Fall Lawyer About Your Legal Matter Today
The knowledgeable team of litigators at Reiner, Slaughter & Frankel is here to help you recover the monetary damages that you deserve for your slip and fall injuries. For a free case evaluation and legal consultation with a knowledgeable Chico slip and fall attorney, please call us today at (530) 891-1909 or contact us online to discuss your slip and fall injury claim or lawsuit.
