A slip and fall claim is a common type of personal injury lawsuit. Various conditions are responsible for causing slip and fall accidents. During summer, small children and older seniors are more likely to slip and fall when they rush into a store during a Florida afternoon thunderstorm. A spill on one of the aisles in a grocery store can cause a customer to experience a slip and fall accident. If you are the victim of a slip and fall accident, it is easy to identify the negligent party. Negligence in this type of accident is typically caused by the owner of the property on which the injury occurs.
The owner of a building or parking lot is legally responsible for taking proper precautions to make the area safe. Here are a few examples of typical conditions causing slip and fall accidents outside. When you read through the following list, you will also notice mention of regulations regarding the property owner’s legal accountability.
Insufficient Outdoor Lighting
Insufficient lighting can cause slip and fall accidents to occur in a parking lot, on curbs or near stairs leading to a building. Poor lighting can cause you to trip on a hole, crack or uneven surface. If the property owner knows that the lighting is defective, he or she is liable for damages because of failing to correct the problem.
Slip and Fall Accidents in Parking Lots
The owner of a parking lot is legally responsible for keeping the area safe. When thinking about safety issues, logic plays a strong role. If the parking lot is reasonably safe for customers to use, the area does not contain dangerous cracks that can cause accidents. The parking lot needs to have an even surface rather than uneven areas prone to causing slip and fall injuries.
Safe Sidewalks for Customers
A property owner is not legally responsible for an injury you experience as a result of a slip and fall accident on a public sidewalk. The reason for alleviating the owner from liabilities is that the city or town owns the public sidewalk. Even so, the court may take a view that the owner is responsible for maintaining a public sidewalk used exclusively by clients. Of course, property owners must repair any dangerous conditions existing on private walkways associated with privately owned businesses.
