Our legal team is considered car crash attorneys but also slip-and-fall attorneys. Many are surprised by the number of places slip-and-fall accidents can happen in Texas. They can occur on a construction site, warehouse, or office.
Renters and visitors can fall at an apartment complex. Slips and falls also occur in big box stores like Walmart or Costco for either customers or employees. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (https://www.bls.gov/iif/) notes the latest non-fatal work injuries for 2002 was 2,804,200. This was an increase of 7.5% from 2021 data. Fatal work injuries in all sectors were 5,486 for the same period, up 5.7% from 2021. Tripping and falling may seem like a minor issue to many, and it’s clear most people survive a fall, but they still suffer injuries.
Depending on the workplace, some common reasons for slip-and-fall accidents include wet floors, loose floor materials, bulging carpeting, uneven floors, unsalted icy spots, trash, and debris. People also trip on cording along pathways and may not even see the threat due to poor lighting.
As Brownsville’s top slip-and-fall attorneys, we often get asked how to handle the problem.
What do you do after a slip and fall injury in Texas?
Number one: Seek medical attention. How your body fell and hit the ground can determine whether the injuries are temporary or will be long-term. Only a healthcare professional can inspect the injuries and determine the plans for care and recovery.
Number two: Make sure you or someone else can document the evidence of the accident. Was the floor wet? Were the conditions unsafe? Did anyone witness the accident? Has this particular spot shown warning signs where many had “near misses” but didn’t fall? Photos help, too.
Number three: Contact a slip-and-fall attorney for support. Whether the property is covered by homeowners insurance or workers’ compensation, the adjustors are still working for the insurance company. They might try to minimize the injuries to settle quickly and cheaply.
And if anyone is advising you to “skip it” because your physical injuries are not “that bad” at the moment, please ignore them. The Texas statute of limitations says you must file a personal injury claim within two years of the injury date.
The Statute of limitations ensures that injury claims happen quickly while the information is fresh in everyone’s mind. It also ensures that all parties address the accident and come to a resolution so it doesn’t continue to be a problem years down the road.
Eventually, everyone involved in the slip and fall will want to move on, but the injured can’t do that if they still suffer pain. That’s why it’s critical to address the problem immediately with a slip-and-fall attorney. If years later you realize you are suffering financial and quality of life losses from the injury, it will be too late.
Duty of Care and Texas Law
If someone falls on a property, the owner could be cited for negligence. For instance, in a driving case, when someone is texting and driving and hits another car, they are negligent. They did not follow the policies and laws to ensure a safe driving experience for everyone. In that same vein, when an employer, company, or property owner allows the premises to be unkept, unsupervised, and disorganized, they could be responsible for the slip and fall.
Duty of Care is based on what a reasonable person would do in these circumstances. It is under Texas negligence laws (https://www.findlaw.com/state/texas-law/texas-negligence-laws.html). For example, no reasonable person would think to leave sharp objects within the reach of children in a daycare center. That would be negligent.
Another term for slip and fall accidents is “premises liability cases,” which includes a shared fault rule. That means each party could be equally or partially responsible for the accident. If there is a scenario where a worker has been assigned safety gear, and they are not wearing it when the fall occurs, they may have to accept some fault for negligence on their part.
As slip-and-fall attorneys, we handle all types of cases. If you’ve been injured by a fall, contact us, and the JV Law Team will get on the case as soon as possible.
