What You Need to Know About Slip, Trip and Fall Cases

It’s a common occurrence – slipping and falling or tripping and falling. Kids trip over uneven sidewalks, and adults trip and fall over throw rugs in their own houses. People slip and fall in supermarkets on recently mopped floors and on neighbors’ poorly maintained front stoops. Slips, trips, and falls cause broken bones, head injuries, and internal injuries that lead to medical costs, lost work time, and pain and suffering. Sometimes falls even result in death.

To provide some context, millions of people sustain a slip and fall each year. Among Americans 65 and over, the Centers for Disease Control reports that over 3 million people go to the emergency room for medical attention after falls, and over 1 million are hospitalized due to injuries related to their falls. Not all of these falls are the result of negligence of another party, of course. Among the population of older Americans, vision problems, home hazards, and other circumstances are often the causes.

While slips, trips and falls may, unfortunately, be part of life, how can you obtain compensation if someone else’s negligence caused the slip and fall?

Premises Liability in California

California, like most states, has a so-called premises liability law that requires property owners – both residential and commercial – to provide safe conditions for visitors who come onto their property. These liability laws, set forth in California Civil Code 1714(a), are based on negligence. To win a premises liability lawsuit, the plaintiff must show: 

• The defendant owned, leased, occupied, or controlled the property;
• The defendant breached their “duty of care” in the use or maintenance of the property;
• The plaintiff was harmed; and
• The defendant’s breach of their “duty of care” was a substantial factor in causing your harm.

The “duty of care” for a property owner is based on what a reasonable property owner would do under similar circumstances.

A plaintiff can generally sue the individual or company who “possesses” the property, which includes the person who owns, leases, occupies, or controls the property. This typically includes:

• Landlords, 
• Business owners and parent companies,
• Tenants/renters,
• Homeowners associations,
• Property management companies, and/or
• Employees of one of the above.

It is the responsibility of the property owner to maintain the property in a reasonably safe position. Even if the property owner engages someone, such as an independent contractor or employee, to fix a property hazard, the property owner is still legally responsible if the hazard is not remediated. 

Seeking Compensation for Slip and Fall Injuries

In many cases, the first step toward obtaining compensation is filing a claim with the defendant’s insurance company. However, insurance companies often try to lowball or minimize insurance payouts, so it’s important to have all the facts about your legal case handy. This includes evidence of medical bills and other facts that support your claim of negligence. 

It’s also important to be aware that in California, the legal concept of  “pure comparative negligence” comes into play in determining monetary compensation. This means that any monetary award to which you are entitled will be reduced by the percentage of your own fault. Here are two illustrative examples: 

• You’re going to a local restaurant for dinner with your spouse. You’re climbing up several poorly lit stair risers while texting and suffer a serious fall. 
• You’re in a big box store wearing shoes with slick leather soles, and you slip on a small patch of water from a ceiling leak. 

In both these cases, it appears that negligence of the premises owner was involved. And yet, the respective plaintiffs’ actions of texting while climbing chairs and wearing slick-soled shoes contributed to the fall. In such situations, under California law, any court award or settlement value will be decreased based on how much fault is apportioned to the plaintiff. For example, if your total damages come to $100,000 and you’re found 30% at fault for the accident, then you will only be entitled to recover 70% of those damages or $70,000.

Special Rules for Slip, Trip and Falls on Government Property

What if you slip and fall on government property? Different rules apply here. Under the California Tort Claims Act, specific regulations are in place if an injury is caused by government carelessness. You must first give formal notice to the relevant government entity about your intention to file an injury case within six months from the date of the incident. Note that the filing deadline is much shorter than for the general premises liability case, which has a two-year statute of limitations. 

In addition, you must prove that the government entity was negligent, which means a hazard on the property caused the fall, and the entity knew about the hazard or should have known about it but failed to repair, remove, or warn about it.

Finally, an additional unique aspect of government premises liability cases is that after a safety hazard has been reported, the government authority must be given what’s considered a reasonable time to fix that issue before they can be held responsible.

Contact a Santa Ana Slip and Fall Attorney

When you make a social call at a friend’s home or go to your local big box store to purchase some remodeling supplies, you’re entitled to expect the premises to be safe for you and your loved ones. It’s the law in California that property owners maintain their property in a reasonably safe condition and warn guests and visitors of dangers that aren’t obvious. When the property owner fails in this, your Santa Ana slip and fall attorney can help you build your claim. We have handled a wide variety of slip, trip, and fall cases and are well-versed in the legal nuances necessary to prevail on behalf of our clients. In addition, the Law Offices Of Benjamin Arsenian has a network of medical professionals and occupational experts who can help us evaluate the value of your legal claim. Contact us today for a free consultation. We’re here to serve you.