Slip and fall accidents lead a high number of lawsuits, even if the injuries suffered were minimal or not long lasting. This is because of the laws pertaining to property owners and the amount of care owed to people on the property. A slip and fall can be a minor accident that leaves you with a few scrapes and bruises, but it could also be much more severe. Some slip and fall cases have resulted in life-changing injuries that altered a person’s daily routine and career, and others have even contributed to the deaths of elderly victims. An establishment that commonly sees slip and fall accidents is a restaurant; patrons and workers alike are at risk due to the nature of most restaurants. If you have been injured in a slip and fall accident in a restaurant, contact our law firm, the Downtown LA Law Group, to learn more about your legal options.
Restaurant Accident Information
A restaurant usually sees dozens of customers each day, perhaps hundreds if it is a fast food establishment. Because of this, there is an increased risk of accidents. A simple problem like spilled ice can now place many people at risk. It is important that restaurants take proper measures to protect its customers in the event of an accident and to warn them of any possible hazards. It is up to the property owners and managers to ensure that customers are protected and it is the responsibility of the workers to carry out these actions. Some of the ways that slip and falls can happen at restaurants include:- Wet floors: Workers often clean the floor at restaurants in between busy times of day, especially if there was a spill of some kind. They need to put up wet floor signs; if they do not, individuals may easily slip and fall on the sections. Many times, leaky mop buckets can cause wet floors near bathrooms and storage rooms, and customers should be wary when walking past them.
- Spilled food and drink: At a restaurant, it is no surprise that the most common cause of slip and falls is the spilled food and drink. Soft drinks may spill at the soda fountain, trays of food may get overturned, waiters may drop bowls of soup while going to the table, cooks may knock over meals, and pieces of food may tumble from plates and rest underfoot. A simple step could lead to a slip, which could be extremely dangerous for some individuals, like waiters, who are often laden down with dishware.
- Tables and chairs: For restaurants that have loose tables and chairs, people could trip on them if they are not pushed in or if they jut out into aisles. They may not be put back into place in between customers coming and going, and as a result, anyone could fall from the hazard.
- Wires: Wires may sometimes be run underneath tables and be kept close to the molding on the walls, but they may occasionally come loose and pose a tripping hazard.
- Other people: A lot of people are often moving around at restaurants. A patron ay trip or collide with a worker, leading to a fall, or someone may trip over someone else’s exposed foot in an aisle. They can also slip on misplaced jackets and sweaters.
- Damaged parking lot: The parking lot of a restaurant must be properly maintained by the property owner. There cannot be any potential dangers or risks, and if there are, he must take care to fix them as quickly as he can. The duty of care for customers in a restaurant does not merely stop where the walls of the restaurant end.
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Risk of Injury
We have compiled a small list of the injuries that we have seen happen from slip and fall accidents in restaurants. Some of these injuries have been used as grounds for lawsuits worth millions of dollars. They include:- Broken arms
- Broken legs
- Sprained ankles
- Broken hips
- Concussions
- Broken fingers
- Broken tailbone
- Neck injuries
- Spinal cord damage
- Disc troubles
- Knee damage
- Torn muscles
- Nerve damage and CRPS
- Traumatic brain injuries
- Closed head injuries
- Paralysis
Premises Liability Details
A property owner must take care to not place anyone who enters the property in harm’s way. This includes three different categories of people: invitees, licensees, and trespassers. Invitees are those who enter the property to exchange services, such as money for food. They are to be given the highest duty of care and are expressly allowed and entreated to enter the premises. Licensees, on the other hand are not giving some sort of exchange and are not there for a contractual reason; instead, they can be considered social guests or those o enter the property lawfully to take care of personal business. Trespassers, on the other hand, do not have any legal right to be on the property. Still, the owner cannot purposely set traps to harm trespassers, and if he is aware that people are trespassing, he cannot go out of his way to harm them if they are not causing any further damage. In restaurants, most customers are invitees, and must be protected at all costs. Commercial property owners can be targeted in a lawsuit if an accident happens because of the owner’s negligence. Some ways he can be negligent include:- Causing the spill, placing the objects in the way of people, or else directly contributing to an accident or risky or dangerous area
- Electing to not do anything to fix a dangerous area despite having knowledge of it
- Not having knowledge of the risk or danger but should have been aware of it, as a reasonable person who had common sense would have
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A restaurant owner must make sure that there are no dangers and that any risks are immediately alleviated. His workers should be diligent and should not delay in cleaning up spills or wet floors. If any accidents happen, the company can be held liable for the damages ensuing from the accident.What to Do after a Slip and Fall Accident
Victims of slip and fall accidents should take care to follow these steps to have the best chance at staying safe and winning a claim. It can be confusing to do anything other than rest after an accident, but it is crucial that you act quickly. The longer you wait, the more difficult it will be to succeed with your lawsuit.- Immediately seek medical treatment for your injuries, even if you do not feel you were too hurt or hurt at all. Some injuries may not show up until a few days after the incident, so it is important that you identify them quickly. Waiting can cause the insurance company to declare that you were lying about your damages or that you were hurt elsewhere and tried to use the accident as a scapegoat.
- Take pictures of your injuries and any damages you suffered
- Photograph the area that was a risk, whether it is a wet floor, raised step, crack in the sidewalk, or anything else
- Request statements and records from any eyewitnesses to tell what happened
- File an incident report with the restaurant that will allow you to show that you made the accident known to the right party
- Get in touch with a skilled lawyer who can help you file your lawsuit against the restaurant