Slip and fall court cases typically don’t make the news, and in most cases, they don’t make it to court either. For many who slip and fall in a restaurant or a department store, it is an embarrassing incident that they just brush off and that is the end of it. However, it shouldn’t be. If you slip and fall on another person’s property, you should always report it even if you aren’t hurt. When we are in an accident, from a major car accident to a minor slip and fall, the adrenaline kicks in and we tend not to feel very much pain for minor injuries. However, after that adrenaline wears off, which can be a full day afterwards, you will be able to feel those injuries come on and they will need treatment, but you shouldn’t be forced to pay for an accident that wasn’t your fault..
There is no question that you should report a slip and fall, but the question is who do you report it to? If you are in a private residence, then you should notify the homeowner about it. Some sources may suggest telling to landlord or property owner of the building if the people living there are renters, but that should only be in the most serious accidents since they can often be pretty hard to track down. If you are on public property like a store, then the most senior manager should be notified, but if they are not available, the property owner or owner of the store will do as well. Notifying the property manager also goes for if the property is government property as well since it might be difficult to figure out the senior figure on the premises to report it to, and often you might find that they don’t care as much as they should.
By reporting the slip and fall injury, even if it was extremely minor, it gives the owners a chance to fix the problem to make sure no one else gets hurt. After all, your accident may have been excessively minor, but that doesn’t mean the next person to fall because of that spot will be so lucky.
Except in the case of private residences, public places where you suffer a slip and fall have a specific form that you need to complete. Typically this form asks you to detail what happened in the accident such as the date, time, location, and what actually occurred. However, you need to be very careful to read over the form thoroughly before signing it. In some cases, the fine print may say that by signing it you are waiving your right to wield legal action against them for your injuries.
At times, there may be a separate form that waives legal action. You have every right not to sign this, but know that the longer your injuries take to manifest, the weaker you case will be. Sometimes it is better if injuries are immediate since it can’t be argued that they happened at some other location. However, never give in to threats or bribes that will talk you out of pursuing legal action if you were indeed injured in the accident even if you took a little too long to seek treatment for it.
If you were in a slip and fall accident and were injured from it, contact us today. The Harnitz Law Office is dedicated to preserving the rights of Minnesota’s injured, so even if you were majorly hurt in the incident or realized you were minorly hurt afterwards, you shouldn’t be stuck with the bill.
