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People in Lancaster are often surprised to learn how frequently a slip and fall incident causes serious injuries. Sometimes, the extent of the damage is not apparent immediately after the fall.
If you were injured after falling due to a dangerous condition on someone else’s property, you might wonder about your right to obtain compensation to cover medical expenses and other effects of the injury.
Fortunately, it is easy to consult an experienced Lancaster slip and fall lawyer who could evaluate the circumstances and explain your options. A dedicated personal injury lawyer familiar with premises liability situations could help protect your rights and work toward a full and fair recovery.
Property Owners Owe a Duty to Visitors
Property owners in Lancaster must act responsibly toward people they invite onto their property. This includes tenants, customers, and virtually anyone coming onto property open to the public. When there is a dangerous condition on the premises, the owner or manager has a duty to warn visitors of the hazard until they can take steps to fix it.
A slip and fall lawyer in Lancaster could help an injured person receive compensation after suffering an injury caused by:
- Loose stairs
- Slippery floors
- Poor lighting in halls or stairwells
- Uneven floors
- Tripping hazards
In most cases, the property owner will be held to a standard of reasonable care. If the owner could reasonably foresee that the hazard would cause an injury but failed to fix or warn about the danger, they could be held liable for any resulting injuries.
Limitations on Recovery
Two state laws place limitations on an injured person’s ability to seek compensation. Even if a case settles before trial, these factors may affect a settlement offer.
What is Comparative Negligence?
The state’s comparative negligence rule limits but does not prevent recovery of compensation when the injured person’s conduct contributes toward the cause of the injury. The rule is applied by attributing responsibility to each party and proportioning compensation accordingly.
For example, if a fall in a grocery store is determined to be 80 percent caused by too much wax on the floor and 20 percent due to the injury victim’s behavior, the amount of compensation would be reduced by 20 percent. A Lancaster slip and fall lawyer could calculate how the rule might affect a specific case.
What is the Time Limit for Filing a Claim?
The second requirement to bear in mind is the statute of limitations. When someone seeks to recover compensation for an injury caused by the negligence of another, they must file the claim with three years under S.C. Code §15-3-530.
Once this deadline has passed, the injured individual loses the opportunity to seek compensation through a lawsuit. For many reasons, it is advisable to act well before the deadline becomes an issue.
Contact a Lancaster Slip and Fall Attorney
In order to recover compensation for a slip and fall injury, the injured person will need to demonstrate liability on the part of the property owner or others. Collecting evidence to support a claim is time sensitive because site of the accident is likely to change, witnesses become harder to find, and video footage could be erased. A Lancaster slip and fall lawyer could begin gathering and preserving evidence so that it is ready for negotiations and trial.
If you suffered injuries due to a slip and fall incident on someone else’s property, you may be entitled to compensation to cover your medical expenses, lost wages from work, and future medical needs. In addition, you could receive compensation for factors such as pain and suffering, emotional anguish and other effects. To learn more, call now for a consultation.