Slip and Fall Accident Lawyers

Some slips or falls lead to minor bumps and bruises, but these kinds of accidents have the potential to cause serious injury as well. Serious injuries bring long-term, sometimes permanent, consequences, and the medical interventions required come at a high financial cost.

If you sustain injury from a slip or fall, and your accident occurred on someone else’s property, you may have grounds to file a personal injury claim to cover your medical costs and other losses. For help pursuing that compensation in Olympia, WA, reach out to the personal injury lawyers at Putnam Lieb Potvin Dailey. Our slip-and-fall accident lawyers have been advocating for the rights of injury victims for decades and are ready to put our knowledge and experience into your case.

Types of Slip-and-Fall Accidents 

Slip and fall accidents can occur just about anywhere. And when they happen because of a property owner’s negligence, that property owner needs to be held accountable for the damage caused.

Private Homes

You may be invited into a family, friend, or neighbor’s home or yard. That homeowner owes you and other guests a legal responsibility, called a duty of care, to warn you of any known hazards on the property. If there is a loose step or railing that could cause you to trip or lose balance and fall, the property owner must inform you of that danger. Any hazards that a homeowner should be reasonably aware of must be disclosed.

Homeowners with pools or other features that might entice young children in particular–trampolines or play structures, for example–and that could lead to injury must be properly secured to prevent those children from entering, even without an invite. While homeowners are not responsible for injuries caused to trespassers, they are responsible for protecting child “trespassers” from the dangers of pools and other “artificial latent conditions.” 

Business Properties

Those in charge of business properties must keep their premises safe for clients. For example, grocery store owners must put up warnings in areas of wet floors and have procedures in place for quick clean-up so customers do not slip and fall on slick surfaces.

Any place that welcomes customers, such as amusement parks, concert venues, doctor’s offices, or any business, must take care to prevent slip-and-fall accidents. If those spaces include parking lots, those lots must have warnings for or be cleared of debris, uneven pavement, potholes, or snow and ice, among other hazards.

Rental Properties

Tenants bear responsibility for keeping their floors dry and clear of debris and other hazards under their control. Landlords, however, are in charge of maintaining the safety of areas outside the tenant’s purview, according to Washington law. In apartment complexes, landlords must have measures in place to keep shared hallways, stairwells, lobbies, and parking areas safe for passage.

Government Properties

Slips and falls can happen in state (or local) parks, government offices, and other places under government control. If you are injured on government property, you still have rights. However, the process for filing a claim against the government and pursuing compensation is different from that for claims against private individuals or business owners. Our team can help you through this more complicated fight for compensation. 

Places of Work

In Washington, employees who are hurt on the job cannot sue employers or fellow workers for their injuries. They can file for workers’ compensation benefits, and the team at Putnam Lieb Potvin Dailey can help with that. However, if a third party’s negligence caused your slip and fall accident, you may be entitled to compensation from a personal injury claim. A slip-and-fall lawyer from our firm will review your case, present you with your options, and help plan your next steps.

What to Do After a Slip-and-Fall Accident

Priority one is ensuring your safety after a slip-and-fall accident. If you need emergency care, do not move until care arrives. Report the incident to the person in charge of the property–this could be the homeowner, business proprietor, store manager, or area supervisor. It is best to document that report. If an official report is taken, get a copy of that report. 

Gather evidence from the accident scene. Take pictures or video of the hazard that caused your slip or fall. Document–perhaps in a text, email, or “notes” app–what happened. Get contact information from witnesses and ask them to document what they saw.

Then, see a medical professional. Do this within a few hours or a day, at most, of the incident. Waiting to get treatment could hurt you physically and hurt your potential slip-and-fall injury claim. 

Some injury symptoms take a little time to appear. But if you continue “pushing through” your day, you could exacerbate an injury, worsening muscle or nerve damage, or deepening small fractures. You could also find yourself facing long-term or fatal consequences of a brain injury. Some traumatic brain injury symptoms have a delayed onset, but if left undiagnosed and untreated, they can cause severe damage or death.

Postponing treatment also gives the negligent party room to blame you for your condition or claim you are inventing injuries. They could argue your minor injury only caused debilitation because you waited to seek care, and therefore, you–not they–are responsible for your worsened situation. Or, they could claim your delay shows you really were not injured in the first place and only experienced symptoms after realizing the opportunity for a payday.

After securing your medical well-being, connect with a slip-and-fall attorney from Putnam Lieb Potvin Dailey so you can file your claim as soon as possible. We will guide you through each step of the legal process, putting you in the best position to receive substantial compensation for your injuries and other damages.

Injuries Caused by Slip or Fall Accidents  

Slips or falls can result in a range of injuries. Some of these injuries heal with time and medical care, but some victims only experience partial recovery. Others are left with permanent, severe disabilities. 

Injuries caused by slips or falls include, but are not limited to:

• Broken Bones: In the best cases, broken bones heal fully. Still, during that recovery time, victims may be unable to work. More complicated breaks may require multiple surgeries and extensive rehabilitation, and even then, victims may not regain full strength and mobility in the affected area. Bone breaks also create a risk for infections with deadly potential.
• Soft Tissue Damage: Muscle, ligament, and tendon strains, sprains, and nerve damage are other possible outcomes. Time and rest are often required elements for healing, but victims can sustain permanent effects, such as chronic pain and limited mobility.
• Brain Injuries: Slips and falls can lead to head and brain trauma. Traumatic Brain Injuries (TBI) can disrupt physiological functioning, as the brain cannot properly communicate with body symptoms, cause cognitive damage, and even lead to personality changes. Victims of permanent brain damage often cannot work, may be unable to care for themselves independently, and cannot interact with others the way they did before the injury. 
• Spinal Cord Injuries: Damage to the spinal cord can cause partial or total paralysis or leave victims with spasms, tingling, or lack of sensation in affected areas. The worst spinal cord injuries also damage victims’ body functions, taking away even their ability to breathe on their own
• Facial Injuries: Falls forward can cause painful facial injuries, breaking the jawbone, cheek, or nose or knocking out teeth. Damage to the occipital bones can damage the eye and lead to vision problems. Facial injuries can also leave disfiguring scars.

What Damages Can Cover

The physical consequences of a fall are clear. These physical consequences, unfortunately, prompt additional fallout. Physical pain causes emotional distress. You might experience anxiety as you work through recovery, are stressed by your rate of recovery, are concerned about finances, and simply feel sidelined from life. 

Victims looking at a future of long-term disability and dependence often develop depression, grieving the loss of their expected future. And even the strongest family units can be strained by changing roles and responsibilities and financial distress.

Losing time at work costs money–and so does medical care. Even if you have good insurance, there are copays and upfront costs. If you cannot return to work, an unstable financial future looms large. The costs of living do not stop just because you are hurt, so you will need a source of financial resources.

The Olympia slip and fall attorneys from our firm will fight to secure the compensation that recovers your losses and future needs and acknowledges your distress. No two slip-and-fall accident cases are exactly alike, but you can trust your attorney to fight for:

• Costs for medical care and continuing medical needs
• Lost wages and future lost income and benefits should you be unable to work again
• Other expenses caused by the accident include the costs of hiring others to manage childcare, transportation, home maintenance, or other responsibilities you can no longer carry out.
• Financial justice for your physical pain, emotional suffering, and reduced enjoyment of life

Our experienced, compassionate team will assess your losses with precision and calculate a settlement demand to bring you financial peace of mind and a sense of justice.

How Washington’s Personal Injury Laws Affect Your Case

Injury victims can sue those responsible for their injuries for compensation under Washington’s personal injury laws. However, if the victim bears any fault, their compensation will be reduced by that percentage of fault. For example, if you hold 30% of the blame for the accident causing your injuries, you collect 70% of the total calculated settlement. An Olympia slip and fall attorney from Putnam Lieb Potvin Dailey will work diligently to protect you from unfair accusations that could reduce your settlement.

State law also requires victims to file their injury claims within a three-year deadline, called a statute of limitations. If your claim is against a local or state government office, that deadline is shortened. To ensure timely filing, partner with our slip-and-fall attorneys as soon as possible after your accident. If you are afraid you have missed the deadline, reach out for a case review anyway. Some circumstances warrant an extension to the statute of limitations.

Steps an Olympia Slip-and-Fall Lawyer Will Take to Secure Damages

Our team will conduct an exhaustive review of your accident. Our decades of experience have made us insightful, attentive investigators, and you can depend on your slip-and-fall attorney to examine every detail of your situation to build a solid case. Through our investigation, we will work to identify the at-fault party and gather convincing and thorough evidence to support your claim.

Then, your attorney will file your claim. Though most personal injury cases settle out of court, an official filing sends a message to the at-fault party, telling them you are ready to fight for your rights at trial and protect your day in court should negotiations fail.

After valuing your losses, your attorney will send a demand letter to the at-fault party’s representative to open negotiations. The Olympia slip-and-fall lawyers at Putnam Lieb Potvin Dailey are skilled negotiators and will work to resolve your case through a settlement. Should the at-fault party prove unreasonable, intentionally slowing down the process or offering consistently inadequate amounts, you may decide to take your case to trial. Trust your lawyer to discuss every case development and offer with you so you can make the wisest decision about how to proceed. Our skilled negotiators are also aggressive, capable trial lawyers, so if you choose to go to trial, you can count on us for effective representation. 

For Superior Representation, Look No Further

Slip or fall injuries bring physical pain and additional effects that ripple into all areas of life. When a property owner’s negligence causes that injury–and those comprehensive effects–you have the right to hold that party accountable for compensating you for your many losses. For superior representation, connect with Putnam Lieb Potvin Dailey by phone or message and arrange for a free case consultation. You deserve full and fair compensation for your damages. Put our 110 years of combined knowledge and experience to work for you. We are committed to fighting for your rights and delivering the most favorable case outcome possible.