Slip & Fall Accidents In A Nutshell
Accidents like slip and fall can happen anywhere. These accidents are very common and happen all of a sudden most of the time. Many people think that these accidents are not serious enough. However, these can leave someone heavily injured. It does not matter whether you are a child or elderly; slip and fall accidents can make permanent injuries to your body. If you have been injured in a slip and fall accident, you can claim to recover damages resulting from the injury by taking help from a slip and fall lawyer. Today, we will discuss slip and fall accidents in brief.
Slip and fall accidents are of different types. There are mainly four kinds of slip and fall accidents: Slip and fall, step and fall, trip and fall, stump and fall.
Slip and fall accidents happen when the contact between the floor and a person’s foot does not support the center of gravity.
Step and fall happen when a foot encounters a hole on the walking surface.
Trip and fall happen when someone encounters an unexpected object on their walking path.
Stump and fall happen when one of your feet is impeded by some hazard.
There are several reasons behind slip and fall accidents and a wet floor is one of them. Wet floors are of two kinds- man-made and nature-made. A customer at a cafeteria may slip if there is a spill on the floor. Similarly, the wet floors that have been mopped recently can lead to these accidents. On the other hand, weather conditions like heavy rain or ice can also create a slippery surface on walkways.
Another reason behind these accidents is uneven surfaces. We usually walk on smooth surfaces and there is nothing to balance on these surfaces. However, if you encounter unexpected bumps and dips on your walkways, you can easily lose your balance. These uneven surfaces lead to serious injuries in most cases. These uneven surfaces are created by chipped flooring, cracks in the sidewalk, broken steps on a staircase, wrinkled carpets and potholes. Uneven surfaces result from poor maintenances and the property owner could be held liable for injuries caused by these accidents.
Broken handrails are another reason behind a slip and fall accident. Holding onto a handrail to keep balance while walking up or down is a common practice. However, a broken handrail will not give you the balance you seek. It can put you at risk of falling as well. As a result, you can face life-threatening injuries from these accidents.
Finally, unlike other accidents, slip and fall accidents can be avoided most of the time. Things like posting warnings, fixing defects, addressing weather conditions, installing proper lightings, etc., can lower the possibility of a slip and fall accident.
