I Slipped and Fell – What to Do Next

If you have recently slipped and fell, it can feel overwhelming and difficult to accomplish your regular tasks – let alone navigating the steps you must take to help you prove your case and obtain compensation for your accident. The following are all tasks you should do as soon as possible to give yourself the best chance of prevailing after you have slipped and fell and are pursuing a slip and fall accident case.

Seek Medical Input

If you have slipped and fell, depending on the severity of the fall, assess your injuries. If your injuries require an immediate visit to Urgent Care, or if you can wait to schedule an appointment with your doctor. Sometimes, the severity of pain from an injury can take a day or two to manifest. This delayed reaction can be the result of adrenaline or shock. Regardless of how you feel in the moments following a fall, do not avoid going to the doctor. Many hospitals and medical centers offer telehealth or phone visits if in-person visitation is not possible.

A thorough medical exam is important because it can detect injuries and mitigate potentially worsening any existing injuries. A prompt medical exam also makes a difference when it comes to insurance claims. In fact, an emergency room visit or a doctor’s assessment can be used as critical evidence in lawsuits because these records often include x-ray results, MRIs, and notes from nurses or doctors.

Report the Accident

It is important to report the accident to the relevant authorities and property owners. For example: if you fell at a private business make sure management knows of your accident and injury. This could be a grocery store, an office building, etc. If you fell in a public area (e.g. at the DMV, or on a broken section of sidewalk), you may need to find the appropriate local authority for the location of your fall. For your protection, consider writing an e-mail to the relevant party instead of calling or speaking to someone in-person. Not only will it make it easier to refute any claims by the other party that they were not notified of your fall, but it will also make it easier to limit your communication – more on that below.

Document Everything

Take a moment and write down everything that happened on the day of your slip and fall accident. Write down what you were doing earlier in the day, what you were wearing, where you went, and how the accident happened. You may also want to write down what immediately followed the accident, including details like how management reacted to your fall and who called for medical assistance. If there is anything you don’t remember, you can and should make a note of that.

If possible, take photos that can help illustrate the scene giving rise to the slip and fall. Try to take as many photos of the surrounding area as possible to show that there were no warning signs. If you fell because of a wet or slippery floor, take a photo illustrating the state of the floor before the area is cleaned. If police arrived at the scene, request a copy of any reports that were made or filed.

Take photos of your injuries, including any bruises, bandages, and casts or neck braces. Make sure to keep a copy of all documents associated with the slip and fall, from medical bills and accident-related expenses, any communications with insurance companies or absences from work because of your injury.

Finally, hang onto any clothes or shoes you wore on the day of the accident. Do not wash them or clean them, even if they have dirt or blood. Instead, place them in a plastic Ziploc bag and place them somewhere safe if they ever need to be submitted as evidence of your accident. If they are wet (like would be expected if you had slipped on a wet floor, or if you were bleeding), allow them to air-dry before placing them in the plastic Ziploc bag. 

Limit Your Communication

Limit your communication with everyone regarding your slip and fall accident except for your attorney. The most important thing is do not accept or assign blame to property owners, managers, or homeowners. In addition, do not post any details related to your accident on social media. Next, do not give a statement to any insurance company (yours or otherwise) before speaking to an attorney. Finally, do not gossip to your friends and family about the circumstances surrounding your slip and fall accident.

Meet With a Lawyer After You Have Slipped and Fell

Slip and fall cases can be difficult to prove. An attorney can help you navigating the complicated aspects of a legal case. By hiring an experienced attorney, they act as an advocate on your behalf when negotiating. The negotiating can be with insurance companies or fielding communications from the parties who may be at fault in your slip and fall case. An attorney can also help you maintain your case file. They will create a clear record of the circumstances leading up to the slip and fall. Finally, an attorney will help you meet all the necessary deadlines when it comes to filing legal claims. Personal injury claims have a brief statute of limitations, so it is important for someone to move quickly – especially if you are physically unable to do so.

Contact a Slip and Fall Accident Attorney Today

You don’t need to wait to meet with a lawyer. In fact, in personal injury cases like slip and fall cases, the sooner you meet with an attorney, the better, as an attorney can help navigate you through the process. The attorneys at B|B Law Group are experienced in personal injury cases and can answer any questions you have about slip-and-fall accidents or help you get started with your legal claim. Contact the B|B Law Group to schedule a consultation today!