Every day, people experience serious falls. Unfortunately, many of these people sustain serious and life-changing injuries. A dangerous fall can occur anywhere, whether on private property, at a commercial premises, or in a public space, and the location can have implications for any resulting litigation. In this blog post, we will discuss some of the common locations where slip and fall accidents occur.
Where Do Slip and Fall or Trip and Fall Accidents Occur?
Again, while a fall can happen anywhere, some places are more dangerous than others. Below are some common places.
Stairways: According to the National Floor Safety Institute (NFSI), the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission’s (CPSC) data ranks stairs, ramps, and landings as the most dangerous products in houses, contributing to millions of injuries and thousands of deaths. It should come as no surprise that stairways, ramps, and landings can also be dangerous in commercial settings. Here are some of the potential causes of the danger:
- Inappropriate materials on stairway surfaces – as a result, there is insufficient traction
- Worn stair treads – over time, usage can make stairs slippery
- Inadequate lighting
- Lack of (or inadequate) handrails
Parking lots: Parking lots come in all shapes, sizes, and states of cleanliness and repair. Below are some of the conditions that can cause slips or trips and falls in parking lots:
- Uneven surfaces and cracks in the pavement or sidewalks
- Foreign objects on the ground
- Holes in the pavement
- Untreated ice or snow
- Absent or inadequate lighting
- Damaged or missing handrails
Homes: Millions of falls occur annually in our homes. This is especially dangerous for older residents. These falls lead to millions of emergency room visits.
Work: While work-related injuries are not the focus of this blog post, it should be noted that work-related falls are commonplace and can lead to serious injury.
Commercial establishments: Millions of falls occur to customers at business establishments. This can include restaurants, hospitals, shops, stores, malls, and other retail locations. It can also include places where people live, such as apartments and nursing homes. The causes are numerous. A few are listed below:
- Floors made of inappropriate materials
- Changes in floor elevation that are not properly marked
- Objects on floors which cause patrons to slip and fall – examples include fruits and vegetables, soap, liquid products (such as sodas and laundry detergents), and other substances that have spilled
- Shelves and displays constructed in a dangerous manner
- Unseen foreign materials, such as oils and other slippery substances
- Foreign materials left on the floor by employees
- Dangerous parking lots
- Missing or damaged stairs and handrails
- Inadequate lighting
Recovering for Injuries Related to Falls
When a customer is invited into a business, the customer maintains the legal status of an invitee. Under Oregon premises liability law, the owner of the property (or the person in charge of it) has a duty to protect the customer from dangers that the owner either knows about or should know about.
Additionally, the business must warn the customer about latent dangers. This analysis can be a bit more complicated if certain issues, such as foreseeability, exist. At any rate, if the business breaches its legal duty and fails to meet the standard of care required by the law, the customer is entitled to recover damages for his or her resulting injuries.
Call with Questions
If you have injured yourself on the premises of another person, you likely have questions about your legal rights. The lawyers at Nelson MacNeil Rayfield help injury victims all across Oregon and are ready to answer all of your questions.
We have handled numerous cases where people slip and fall or trip and fall on the premises of another. Similarly, we are familiar with cases where people are injured in other ways, including as victims of criminal behavior, while visiting business premises as invitees. In all of these instances, it is important to hold those who are negligent accountable for their wrongful actions. We believe such accountability is necessary to ensure that others will act reasonably and protect society.