Parkville, MD Slip and Fall Lawyer

Slipping and falling is certainly embarrassing, but a little embarrassment might be the least of your worries. Slip and falls often leave people with severe injuries, and property owners can be sued for damages.

While people sometimes assume that slip and fall accidents are never that serious, this could not be further from the truth. People are often badly hurt in slip and fall accidents. Injuries to your limbs, spine, neck, and head are possible, and you might be on a long road to recovery. Property owners are often liable for slip and falls because they negligently maintained the premises. How liability is determined might depend on whether the accident victim was a guest or a trespasser. Common claims involve injuries in private homes or business establishments. Evidence should show that the defendant is responsible for maintaining the premises where you were injured, that they failed to maintain it, and that their failure directly led to your injuries.

Get in touch with our slip and fall lawyers by calling Rice, Murtha & Psoras at (410) 694-7291 and set up an appointment for a free case review to start your claim.

Are Injuries Bad in Slip and Fall Accidents in Parkville, MD?

Contrary to the misconception surrounding slip and fall accidents, injuries from these accidents can be severe, even debilitating. Depending on where and how you fall, you might be left with critical injuries and desperately need emergency medical care.

People often experience fractures in slip and fall accidents. For many, this is because they might extend their arms outward to break their fall, only to land awkwardly, breaking the bones in their hands, wrists, or arms. Another possibility is that you land at an odd angle on your legs. Broken ankles and legs are not uncommon in slip and fall accidents.

We must also consider the premises where you fall. For some, the ground is uneven. They might badly injure their back depending on how hard they fall and where they land. Back injuries have a way of leaving victims with lasting pain. Spinal injuries might lead to mobility issues or permanent disabilities.

Many victims fall and hit their heads. Head injuries can be extreme, even deadly in some cases. You might experience concussions or skull fractures that need immediate medical attention. Even worse, you might experience some form of brain damage that might be permanent.

Responsibility for Slip and Falls in Parkville, MD

What is tricky about slip and fall accidents is determining who should be held responsible. Victims often hear that they cannot hold someone else responsible for their clumsiness, but this kind of talk only serves to blame injured victims. The truth is that the person who owns the premises where your accident happened can be sued for damages.

Invited Guests

The duty of care owed to plaintiffs by defendants depends on whether they were guests on the premises or present without permission. If you are an invited guest, the defendant owes you a duty to keep the premises reasonably safe by repairing or removing any known hazards. In addition, they have a duty to make reasonable inspections for potential unknown hazards. If they fail to do this, they might be liable for your accident.

One possible scenario is that a plaintiff fell on their neighbor’s stairs after the neighbor invited them over for dinner. Perhaps the stairs were uneven, old, and rickety. The neighbor would have had a duty to repair the stairs so they are safe for guests or warn guests to avoid them.

Even if the defendant claims they did not know about the unsafe conditions, our slip and fall lawyers can argue that they should have made reasonable inspections. The key word here is “reasonable.” A property owner might not have to completely turn the premises upside down looking for possible hazards. However, they should take reasonable steps to detect any unsafe conditions they might not be aware of.

Reasonably Expected Guests

Not all guests need to be invited to be lawfully present on someone else’s property. Property owners might also owe a duty of care to guests they did not explicitly invite but should have reasonably expected. A common example is a mail carrier.

Mail carriers often enter private property without permission to deliver mail or packages. People should reasonably expect a mail carrier to be on their property, at least certain areas of their property, particularly the front walkway and steps. If a person fails to keep their front walkway safe and hazard-free, they might be liable if the mail carrier is injured.

The same can be said for guests who were not invited but permitted to stay. For example, suppose the defendant hosted a party and someone they did not invite decided to crash the party. If the defendant allows the uninvited guest to stay, they owe them a duty of care and safety.

Trespassers

Property owners do not owe trespassers any duty of care if they are unknown. An unknown trespasser is someone the property owner did not invite and should not have reasonably expected. A trespasser might even be someone the property owner explicitly told to stay away. For example, if someone illegally broke into your home and injured themselves because of some hazard or dangerous condition on the property, they likely could not sue you for damages.

Known trespassers might be a different story. Known trespassers are people without authorization to be on the premises, but the property owners reasonably expect they will enter the premises anyway. For example, schoolchildren taking a shortcut through a neighbor’s yard might be known trespassers if they do it every day. A known trespasser might be owed a duty of care and can sometimes sue for slip and fall injuries.

Important Evidence in a Slip and Fall Case in Parkville, MD

Various pieces of evidence might be useful in your claim. Whether you fall inside a store or business or inside a private home, there might be security cameras watching. If we can obtain the security camera footage, we might be able to understand what caused your accident.

Whether or not there are security cameras, you should take photos of the area immediately after your fall, if possible. Property owners will likely clean up the accident scene after you leave. This means the dangerous hazard that caused you to fall will be removed, and we might lose precious evidence. Taking photos immediately after your fall might preserve details about the unsafe conditions that led to your injuries.

Contact Our Parkville, MD Slip and Fall Lawyers Now

Get in touch with our slip and fall lawyers by calling Rice, Murtha & Psoras at (410) 694-7291 and set up an appointment for a free case review to start your claim.