Slip and Fall Lawyer Philadelphia
If you slipped and fell while visiting someone else’s property in Philadelphia, you may have a viable personal injury claim to make against the property owner or other party responsible for maintaining the property. Under Pennsylvania premises liability law, property owners and occupiers must keep their property in a safe condition to prevent injuries, including slips and falls, on their properties.
Cousin Benny Personal Injury is there to help you navigate the legal process. Our experienced personal injury lawyers can investigate your case and determine your legal options. Contact us today for a free case review to learn more.
Why Choose Cousin Benny?
We Treat Our Clients Like Family
When you work with the slip and fall lawyers at Cousin Benny, you will feel like family. We take care of you, handling all communication and negotiation with the defendants and keeping you apprised of developments in your case every step of the way.
Free Consultations
Want to find out how much your case is worth? Call the Philadelphia slip and fall lawyers at Cousin Benny to discuss your case, free of charge!
No FEE Until You Win
We take slip and fall cases on a contingency basis, which means that there is no cost to you unless and until you win.
How Can A Philadelphia Slip and Fall Lawyer Help Me?
An experienced Philadelphia slip and fall lawyer, like Cousin Benny, will fully investigate your matter including interviewing witnesses, gathering visual evidence, reviewing medical records, and talking with experts. Your slip and fall lawyer will not only prepare and submit your claim, but they will also take your case to court–if necessary–and seek a settlement for any damages caused.
What Kind of Damages Are Available in a Slip and Fall Case
There are three types of damages that can be sought in a slip and fall case: economic, non-economic, and punitive. Knowing the differences between these are important as you’ll be asked to detail any kind of damages you may have experienced in your slip and fall accident.
Economic Damages
Economic damages in a slip and fall case include past and future medical bills, lost wages, reduced earning capacity, and any other financial areas negatively impacted by an accident. These damages are easy to calculate as long as receipts, invoices, bills and other documentation are available to record.
Non-economic damages
Non-economic damages include pain and suffering, loss of consortium (marital issues caused by the accident), and anything else that can’t be easily calculated. These damages are harder to quantify and involve litigation at times but are just as valid as economic damages.
Punitive Damages
Punitive damages are damages sought in the context of property negligence as a criminal act. In this case, the property owner is being charged with a form of gross negligence in failing to maintain their property which resulted in your injury. In punitive damage claims, negligent property owners found guilty will face penalties including fines and possible jail time.
We Handle All Slip and Fall Accident Cases
Common Slip and Fall Injuries
Injuries from a trip or slip and fall range from minor to very serious, even deadly. Learn more about slip and fall statistics to stay informed and safe.
These are the most common slip and fall injuries:
- Contusions and bruising
- Sprains
- Broken bones
- Muscle strains
- Cuts and scrapes
- Concussion
- Brain injury
Common Causes of Slip and Fall Accidents
Poorly maintained property is a frequent cause of slip and fall accidents. Property owners can avoid accidents by addressing the following, among others:
- Uneven sidewalks: If sidewalk problems lead to slips and falls, you could have a personal injury claim against the city or the owner of the property adjacent to the sidewalk.
- Spills: Property owners are expected to regularly inspect the premises and clean up any spills or other potential hazards.
- Wet floors: Floors could be wet from spills, rain, polish, or other sources, creating a dangerously slippery walkway.
- Ice: The harsh winters in Pennsylvania can result in pileups of ice and snow. Property owners must remove ice and snow to prevent slips and falls on their property.
- Holes or dips in the walkway: Holes or dips in the walkway can cause pedestrians or property visitors to slip and fall.
- Loose carpet: The carpet could be loose due to poor installation or maintenance. Loose carpet can cause pedestrians to lose their footing.
- Missing handrails: Handrails help property visitors safely navigate walkways and stairs. Missing or damaged handrails can cause serious accidents.
- Lack of building maintenance: Poor building maintenance can result in dangerous conditions that could have easily been avoided.
- Poor lighting: Insufficient lighting can contribute to slip-and-fall accidents because visitors might be unable to spot potential hazards.
- Lack of warning signs: Property owners could avoid liability when they place clear and obvious signs that warn visitors about known hazards. However, missing signs could indicate negligence.
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Defective or poorly maintained escalators or elevators: Poorly maintained or defective elevators, escalators, and moving walkways can also contribute to serious accidents.
Our experienced slip and fall lawyers can investigate your case to determine the factors that contributed to your injuries.
Where Do Slip and Fall Accidents Occur?
Slip-and-fall accidents can occur anywhere, but there are some places where they occur more frequently. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), millions of Americans slip and fall every year. Slips and falls can cause various injuries. Traumatic brain injury is a common injury stemming from these serious accidents. The CDC reports that 700,000 people are hospitalized with fall-related injuries each year.
Many slip-and-fall accidents occur in the workplace. According to the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics, 43 fatal slips, trips, and falls occurred in Pennsylvania in 2023, accounting for 25% of all Pennsylvania workplace fatalities. Nationally, these accidents are responsible for 17% of fatalities in the workplace.
Various factors can contribute to Pennsylvania’s higher-than-average number of slip and fall accidents, including the growth of the construction industry in the state and the increasing aging population. As people age, they are more likely to fall. The Pennsylvania Department of Aging reports that 30% of people aged 65 or older fell in 2021, but less than 50% of falls are reported, so the number could be much higher.
Some of the most common locations of slips and falls include the following:
- Grocery stores: Grocery stores are one of the most common sites of slips and falls due to spills, leaks, wet floors, and cluttered aisles.
- Department stores: Polished floors and other hazardous conditions can contribute to slip-and-fall accidents.
- Malls: Strip malls and shopping malls often have high foot traffic, which can contribute to slips and falls.
- Convenience stores: The small and crowded nature of convenience stores can lead to a greater number of slips and falls in these locations.
- Restaurants: Food and liquid spills, polished flooring, and uneven flooring can cause slip-and-fall accidents in restaurants.
- Gyms and health clubs: Gyms, health clubs, and fitness centers can also be the site of serious slip-and-fall accidents.
- Hospitals: Hospitals and nursing homes are expected to complete a fall assessment when admitting patients. Failing to check for
- Hotels: Hotel lobbies and pools are other common locations for slips and falls.
- Warehouses: Spills, uneven flooring, and cluttered aisles can contribute to slips and falls in warehouses.
- Construction sites: A lack of fall protection equipment or warning signs can lead to slips and falls on construction sites. Unsafe structural conditions can also contribute to these accidents.
- Private homes: Many slip-and-fall accidents occur in private homes where the property owner or renter is responsible for maintaining the property.
- Apartment buildings: Accidents on the public portion of apartment buildings, such as stairwells, gazebos, and other common areas, can be the legal responsibility of
- Outdoor locations: Slips and falls can occur in parking lots, sidewalks, roadways, or outdoor stairways.
- City, state, or public property: Accidents can also occur in government buildings, schools, and public parks.
Our skilled legal team can help if you were injured in any of these locations due to dangerous conditions on the property.
Steps to Take After a
Slip and Fall Accident
A slip and fall accident may seem like a simple thing initially, but if you’re injured, you may be subject to financial consequences such as medical expenses, unpaid time off from work, and painful rehabilitation. It’s important, therefore, to document your accident properly so you can be fairly compensated for the damages you have suffered.
Document the Accident
Depending on the severity of the accident, ensure that you’re able to document evidence for later claims. Use your phone to take photos of your injuries, your clothes, the area the slip & fall occurred, and any other physical evidence that can paint a vivid picture of what happened.
Was there a “slippery floor” sign nearby? A mop and bucket on the floor or against the wall? There’s no such thing as taking too many pictures, so document the incident and scene as much as you can.
Was there a “slippery floor” sign nearby? A mop and bucket on the floor or against the wall? There’s no such thing as taking too many pictures, so document the incident and scene as much as you can.
Notify the Property Owner
If the slip & fall occurs in a place of business, ask for an accident form, fill it out and request a copy for your own records. If police create any kind of record of the incident, request your own copy as well. In all other cases, make sure you contact the property owner and keep strict documentation of all interactions concerning the accident.
This documentation may play a vital role in your claim process, so make sure to write down details like times, dates, and details discussed.
This documentation may play a vital role in your claim process, so make sure to write down details like times, dates, and details discussed.
Seek Medical Care
Immediately following a slip & fall accident, you should seek medical care by a professional. Even if nothing seems broken or injured, a simple examination will confirm or rule out any possibilities. A judge will want to see documentation proving you were seen by a medical professional, so make sure you keep all associated paperwork.
In order to be properly reimbursed for any medical procedures and tests, hold onto any documentation related to the accident.
In order to be properly reimbursed for any medical procedures and tests, hold onto any documentation related to the accident.
Speak to an Experienced Slip and Fall Lawyer
A slip and fall is essentially a premises liability matter. In these cases, negligent owners are at fault when they fail to properly maintain their property, resulting in an injury to a visitor.
Speaking with an experienced premises liability lawyer in Philadelphia helps you understand your rights, what damages you may be entitled to, and lays out the necessary steps for moving forward with your claim.
Speaking with an experienced premises liability lawyer in Philadelphia helps you understand your rights, what damages you may be entitled to, and lays out the necessary steps for moving forward with your claim.
Call us today
Benjamin and Anthony know what it takes to get the most for every client.
When is a Pennsylvania Property Owner Liable For My Injuries?
In Pennsylvania, whether the property owner or manager is responsible for your injuries depends on why you are on their property.
Invitee
If your presence on the property is known or expected by the property owner, you are an invitee and the property owner owes you the highest degree of protection from harm.
For example, business owners expecting customers on their property owe a duty of care to those customers to keep the property safe, warn them of any hazards, and promptly remediate hazardous conditions.
Licensee
If you are visiting an invitee for personal reasons, for example, visiting a friend at a rental property, you are a licensee. In Pennsylvania, property owners must keep licensees who are visiting their property reasonably safe, primarily because they should already be safeguarding the well-being of their invitees.
Trespasser
Believe it or not, property owners owe a duty of care to trespassers in Pennsylvania, especially if they are aware of the trespasser’s presence on the property.
A property owner may be liable for a trespasser’s injuries if they can prove that they were intentionally or knowingly injured, such as when a homeowner releases a dog to attack a trespasser. However, these cases arise more frequently when property owners fail to mark hazards on their property, causing injury to a trespasser.
What Factors Affect a Slip and Fall Settlement
Liability and comparative negligence are two major factors to consider when seeking damages in a slip and fall case. Liability determines the level of fault a property owner takes in a slip and fall accident, while comparative negligence determines the amount of damages a plaintiff can seek.
Liability
There are four primary conditions that must be met in order to prove that an owner is liable for an injury sustained on their property. They include:
- Proving that the property or element of the property was dangerous
- The owner had knowledge of the dangerous property element or should have known
- The owner had reasonable time to rectify the danger on his property but failed to do so
- As a result of this failure to rectify the danger on their property, you suffered some sort of injury
Comparative Negligence
Comparative negligence laws were designed to compensate injured parties for partial damages based on their percentage of fault. Pennsylvania is a “modified comparative negligence” state following the “51 percent rule.” What this means is that if an injured party is found to be at least 51% at fault for a slip and fall accident, they cannot recover any damages in a claim.
How Long Do You Have to File a Claim in Pennsylvania?
Individuals in Pennsylvania have two years from the date of the slip and fall to sue property owners or anyone else claimed as negligent. After two years time, the statute of limitations has run out and you can no longer claim damages against the defendant.
Slip and Fall Accident FAQs
What is the Average Settlement for a Slip and Fall Case in Philadelphia?
It’s difficult to say what an average settlement for a Philadelphia slip and fall case is as there are numerous factors that make each case unique. Cases generally settle between the $10,000 to $50,000 range.
As the severity of an injury increases, so does the settlement amount. Much of what is awarded to plaintiffs in a slip and fall claim is based on the amount of medical bills tallied following the accident.
How Do I Know If I Have a Valid Slip and Fall Case?
Despite being labeled as “slip and fall” accidents, the truth is you neither need to slip or fall in order to seek damages. If you trip and twist an ankle but don’t fall to the floor, you can still seek damages if a property owner is liable. It’s important to speak with a knowledgeable Philadelphia slip and fall lawyer to help determine if you have a case or not.
Who is Generally Responsible for a Slip and Fall accident in Philadelphia?
If you are injured on private property, it is up to you to prove liability on the part of the owner using the aforementioned liability conditions. If the injury occurred on public property, i.e. property owned and operated by the city of Philadelphia, you may have a tougher time seeking damages as the city is only liable for certain obstructions and obstacles on their property.
Our slip and fall lawyers in Philadelphia can help you determine if you have a viable injury claim whether your injury was sustained on public or private property.
How Can You Prove Negligence in a Slip and Fall case?
Negligence is proven by providing evidence that the property was dangerous and ultimately neglected by the owner, resulting in the injury sustained. Your lawyer will help you accumulate the evidence needed to prove negligence, which is why it’s important to begin speaking with a Philadelphia slip and fall lawyer immediately.
If I Slip and Fall on a Sidewalk in Philadelphia, Can I Sue the City?
It depends on the severity and nature of the defect on the sidewalk that caused the slip and fall. Courts normally interpret laws in favor of the city, therefore these kinds of claims can get very complex when it comes to liability. The city, for instance, will likely not be liable for debris or spills on the sidewalk. But, if the sidewalk is damaged and considered dangerous, you may have a claim worth pursuing.
Let Our Philadelphia Slip and Fall Lawyers Help
Cousin Benny is a determined and experienced slip and fall lawyer in Philadelphia who is ready to fight for you. Don’t settle for anything less than what you are owed for the damages and pain you have suffered. Waiting or putting off your claim will only weaken your case, so call today and see how Cousin Benny can help you with your case.
Talk With One of Our Slip and Fall Lawyers Today to See How Much Your Case is Worth
Our lawyers are highly skilled and well-versed in Philadelphia slip and fall injury cases. Call our lawyers today and see how much your case is worth.