I slipped and fell at a store and the store’s employees know it really happened. Why is the store refusing to compensate me?
Author: Attorney Jason Macri
Many people believe that if they become injured in a store because of a wet floor or another dangerous condition that the store is instantly liable for the injury and must immediately begin paying for medical bills. Much of the time, when a person becomes injured in a store, the store’s employees will immediately respond to the scene of the incident and appear to try and help the injured person. The employees will typically mop up a wet floor or otherwise clean up a dangerous mess, offer to contact emergency medical services, create an incident report indicating that a person became injured and even sometimes indicate exactly what caused the person to become injured. They will sometimes give the appearance that they know they are at fault for the incident and will be as helpful as possible.
Much of the time, the fact that the employees appear to be apologetic and willing to help the injured person will result in a disarming of the injured person and a sincere attempt on the behalf of the injured person to work with the store to help rectify the problem. Risk Management from the store will typically contact the injured person and ask how they are doing, giving the appearance that they care about your wellbeing. They will also inquire about injuries and may even ask the injured person to sign a medical authorization so that they can have access to your medical records and bills. Though this type of request appears to have genuine intentions, many injured people find out later that it was just an attempt to get a jump start on defending against any potential lawsuit.
Under Florida Law, it is not sufficient for an injured person to simply indicate that they were inside of a store and that the floor was wet, thus causing them to fall and become injured. There must be additional proof beyond those facts in order to succeed in a claim against the store. In Florida, the injured person must prove that the store’s employees either knew or should’ve known about the presence of the substance on the floor prior to the person becoming injured by it in order for the injured person to receive compensation for their injuries. The store’s employees and risk management personnel know this fact, thus the reason why they appear to be so helpful at the outset of the incident.
If a person becomes injured as a result of a slip and fall in a store, the injured person should seek out an experienced injury lawyer as soon as possible. The injury lawyers at the Law Office of Dell & Schaefer have handled thousands of claims against stores such as Walmart, Publix and Target and are aware of all of the various tricky tactics employed by the store’s risk management personnel. Our attorneys will inform you of the potential tricks and will protect you in order to defend against these tactics. If you or a loved one have become injured in a store, call our experienced slip and fall attorneys. We will ensure that your rights are protected and that you remain entitled to every form of compensation you deserve.
