Slip and fall accidents can happen almost anywhere, from grocery stores to parking lots. What may seem like a minor fall at first can quickly turn into serious injuries, medical expenses, and missed time from work. Our slip and fall attorneys explain what you should do afterward to protect both your health and your ability to seek fair compensation for your injuries and losses.
Taking the Right Steps Early Can Help Preserve Important Evidence
After a slip and fall, there are several important steps people should take as soon as possible:
Report the Incident Immediately
After a fall, report the incident to a manager, property owner, or supervisor as soon as possible. Be clear about where and what happened, including the condition that caused the fall.
Reporting the incident right away helps create documentation of the event while the details are still fresh. Waiting too long can make it harder to determine what conditions existed at the time of the fall.
Photograph the Scene and the Hazard
If you are physically able, take photographs of the area where the fall occurred. Capture the floor, surrounding conditions, lighting, signage present, warnings, and the hazard itself.
Photographs can become important because conditions often change quickly after a slip and fall. Spills may be cleaned up, warning cones may suddenly appear, or the dangerous condition may disappear entirely.
Look Around to Determine Why You Fell
If you fall, stop and look around. Try to identify what caused your fall. Ask yourself:
- Was the floor wet, uneven, or unmarked?
- Was the aisle cluttered with boxes, or was the floor dirty and unswept?
- Was the fall preventable?
- Was it something that happens regularly?
- Was the hazard something right in front of store employees and just ignored?
Then, pay attention to what is said around you. Does anyone admit they knew about the problem? Did someone get in trouble?
The most important thing to consider is whether your fall was caused by something the property owner knew about or SHOULD have known about if they’d been alert.
All of these facts matter when dealing with a fall in a store or business.
Seek Medical Attention Promptly
It is important to seek medical care after a slip and fall. Some injuries, including back injuries, head trauma, and soft tissue damage, may not fully appear until hours or days later.
Medical records can also help connect the injuries directly to the incident itself. Any delay, though, can be used to undermine your claim.
Be Careful When Speaking With Insurance Companies
Insurance companies may ask questions shortly after a fall about what happened, why you fell, and whether warnings were present.
Before giving detailed recorded statements, it is often important to fully understand your injuries and the circumstances surrounding the incident. We advise discussing the event with our legal team before speaking with the insurance companies.
Why Warning Signs and Hazard Awareness Matter
Property owners are liable for any injuries that people suffer on their property due to an unsafe condition, O.C.G.A. § 51-3-1. However, many slip and fall cases pivot on whether the owner knew or should have known of the hazard and if they failed to correct it or properly warn visitors.
One example we dealt with involved teenagers pouring STP oil treatment onto a floor. The owner became aware of the spill and attempted to clean it up. However, no warning signs or cones were placed around the area.
When someone later slipped, the owner was liable because they failed to provide adequate warnings about a known hazard. Even though the owner did not create the original spill, the lack of signage potentially opened the door to liability.
Call the Law Offices of Gary Bruce After a Slip and Fall
If you have questions after a slip and fall incident, contact the Law Offices of Gary Bruce for a free case consultation. We can explain what you should do next and your legal rights.
