What To Do After A Slip And Fall Accident
After a slip and fall accident, people experience a host of emotions, and confusion is usually the most prominent. A slip and fall accident often happens at businesses or other public places, and the aftermath of the accident must be handled exactly the right way since the property owner is usually responsible for your injuries. Below, you can read about the best way to deal with a slip and fall accident.
Stay Where You Are
When you fall on another person's property and you think you may be hurt, don't move. If you are badly injured and try to move, you may cause an even worse injury. Even if you feel fine, it is always best to remain exactly where you fell. You still need to get assistance with rising in case you become weak or dizzy as you try to stand.
Call For Help
Ask the first person you see to call for an ambulance immediately. If there is nobody nearby, call out loudly that you need help or use your mobile phone to call for an ambulance. Continue to stay exactly where you are until the ambulance arrives so you can get medical attention. About 8 million emergency room visits occur as a result of slip or trip and falls every year, so this type of accident is probably more common than you may think. There is no reason to take a chance by not getting checked out immediately.
Report Your Injury
As soon as the opportunity presents itself, it is important that you inform the owner of the premises where you were injured that you slipped and fell. Although the property owner may be aware of your injury after you are taken away in an ambulance, they still need to be officially informed that the reason you had to get medical attention was a slip and fall on their premises.
Contact an Attorney
Contacting a personal injury lawyer, especially one with experience in areas like car accidents and slip and fall accidents, is an important part of pursuing your case. To win compensation for your injury, very specific documentation will be necessary.
Your lawyer will do several things to prove that the property owner is responsible for your slip and fall injury, including:
- Interviewing witnesses who saw you slip and fall
- Taking photographs of the accident scene
- Obtaining copies of any accident reports generated at the store
The sooner you contact a lawyer, the better, due to the time-sensitive nature of the evidence. For example, if you slipped and fell due to a lack of proper signage at a local retail store, your attorney will probably want to send an investigator to the scene of the accident for documentation before the scene is cleaned up. Working with an attorney is the best way to get the fair treatment you deserve after a slip and fall injury. Call a personal injury lawyer like http://www.hvlawfirm.com to get started today.
Share