Patchogue Slip And Fall Injury Lawyer

Slip or trip and fall accidents are a leading cause of death and injury in the United States. Slips, trips and falls can occur anywhere, from nursing homes to retail stores, schools, parks, driveways, private homes, workplaces, and more.

Some slip and fall accidents can entitle you to a personal injury lawsuit against an at-fault party responsible for the fall. To file a lawsuit, you must gather evidence to prove how your accident occurred, identify who was responsible for the accident and identify the damages you suffered as a result. For assistance with your case, call Rosenberg & Gluck, L.L.P. today at (631) 451-7900. Our slip or trip and fall lawyers serving Patchogue can help you gather evidence, prove liability, and file a lawsuit if you have grounds for one.

The Severity of Slip and Fall Accidents

Slips or trips and falls disproportionately affect the elderly, although they can affect anyone. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC):

• Over 35 million older adults fall every year.
• Elderly adult falls lead to over 32,000 fatalities annually.
• Roughly three million older adults end up in emergency rooms because of falls every year.
• Falls are the leading cause of traumatic brain injuries.
• Falls resulted in medical costs of over $50 billion in 2015.

These are substantial findings, but slips or trips and falls do not only affect the elderly. According to the Occupational Health and Safety Administration (OSHA), over 5,000 people were killed in workplace accidents in 2018, and about one-fifth of these deaths were due to falls.

Some of the injures you can suffer in a slip or trip and fall accident include:

• Traumatic Brain Injuries–TBIs
• Injuries to the head, neck, back, and spinal cord
• Torn, pinched, or stretched nerves
• Bone, muscle, and ligament injuries
• Internal bleeding
• Organ damage
• Eye, ear, facial, and/or dental injuries
• Cuts, bruises, abrasions, and lacerations

In addition to physical injuries, you can also lose income by being unable to work, and the treatment, testing, and medication costs for the injuries above can be significant.

Common Causes

There are many causes of slips, trips and falls. Many slip and fall accidents are a combination of more than one factor. These factors include:

• Poor worker training
• Cracked or damaged surfaces
• Inadequate lighting
• Inadequate maintenance
• Poor signage regarding slip and fall hazards
• Slippery surfaces
• Cluttered floors
• Inappropriate footwear
• Missing safety or fall prevention devices or equipment
• Torn carpeting
• Slippery rugs or mats

Sections 240 and 241 of New York’s scaffold laws–contained in New York Labor Law (LAB) §240– provide details on the standards and the kinds of protection that employers and workplaces must provide their workers to prevent fall accidents. The same applies to OSHA Standard §1926.501, which states that:

• Employers must assess the structural integrity of workplace walking and working surfaces.
• Work can only be performed on surfaces that meet specific weight capacity and strength requirements.
• Guardrails, safety nets, and/or fall arrest systems are required wherever workers work six feet or more above another level.
• Holes must be covered, and other fall hazards must be addressed as practicable to ensure worker safety.
• Barricades must be used where needed to cordon off work zones that contain fall hazards.

Similar rules and standards can be found for nursing homes, public spaces, and elsewhere. A failure to abide by these rules and standards or to address slip and fall hazards can lead to a slip and fall lawsuit against an employer, a nursing home administrator, a business, the owner of private property, or otherwise. Our slip or trip and fall lawyers serving Patchogue can investigate your case to identify the at-fault party and quantify your damages. Call Rosenberg & Gluck, L.L.P. at (631) 451-7900 to discuss your case.

The Costs of Slips and Falls

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that compensation and medical care costs of workplace slips and falls are about $70 billion annually. The CDC also estimated that the care costs for older adult falls were roughly $50 billion in 2015. Combined, the costs of workplace and elderly slip and fall accidents are estimated to be over $100 billion every year.

Fault and Liability

You can sue an at-fault party who is liable and responsible for your slip and fall accident if you can show that:

• The at-fault party owed you a duty of care.
• The at-fault party breached this duty in some way.
• The breach in the duty of care led to an accident.
• Your accident led to losses and damages.

Identifying the at-fault party comes down to gathering evidence of the cause or causes of your accident. You can hold a business operator, a premises owner, a maintenance team, a construction site operator, or other parties liable for a slip and fall accident if you can show that the actions of the party in question led to your accident.

For workplace accidents, a third-party may be responsible due to a failure to meet workplace safety rules or standards. For business operators or premises owners, this can take the form of a failure to identify or rectify workplace or premises slip and fall hazards. For maintenance teams, it can take the form of a failure to properly address a slip and fall hazard, a failure to place proper signage near repaired or damaged floors, or a failure to properly repair or address slip and fall hazards.

Evidence that you can use to prove the fault of an at-fault party includes:

• Video footage or photos of the accident
• Maintenance or service logs
• Complaints filed about a slip and fall hazard
• Proof of the failure of a contractor to meet workplace safety standards
• Eyewitness statements regarding an accident
• Expert testimony regarding the accident

Contact Us Today

Contact Rosenberg & Gluck, L.L.P. today at (631) 451-7900. Our slip or trip and fall lawyers serving Patchogue will review your case and can help you file a lawsuit for damages if you have the legal grounds required for one. We can also help you gather evidence, identify at-fault parties, and quantify your losses and damages.

The statutes of limitations for personal injury cases are generally three years, although exceptions may apply that can significantly shorten this deadline. Contact us today to review your case and for a detailed discussion on the next steps, you should take.