Reno Slip and Fall Accident Lawyer
While most people assume that car accident cases dominate the personal injury landscape in Nevada, slip and fall claims are actually almost as common. In fact, these claims consistently account for the second-highest quantity of accidents in the region. Slip and fall injuries can cause a tremendous amount of pain—both mental and physical—for injured individuals. If you or a loved one has sustained an injury in a slip and fall accident, it’s crucial to understand from whom you can seek compensation and how to approach legal representation. Partnering with a Reno Slip and Fall Lawyer that you trust will help guide your decisions and increase your likelihood of receiving compensation for the full cost of your injuries.
A Primer on Slip and Fall Accidents in Reno
Slip and fall injuries are common—they kill more workers on job sites than any other type of accident except highway collisions, according to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, which numbers falls among their Fatal Four accidents. Wet or uneven surfaces, large recreational equipment, and tight spaces all have the potential to cause an individual to slip and fall. The Reno area is vibrant and bustling, but this decadence comes at a price. There are countless opportunities for slip and fall injuries to occur in such a lively, active city.
Countless personal injury lawyers insist that they’re well-equipped to handle slip and fall accident cases. At Benson & Bingham Accident Injury Lawyers, LLC, our focus on compassion and honesty sets us apart from our competitors. Our experience, resources, and accessibility position us to work as your partner in seeking compensation for your injuries.
What Compensation Can You Claim From Reno Slip and Fall Injuries?
Every slip and fall case is different, but generally speaking, you can claim two categories of damages as compensation for your injuries and losses.
First, you can claim economic damages, which consist of provable financial losses you suffered because of an accident and injury, such as:
- Medical expenses for treating your injury.
- The income you lost when your injury temporarily or permanently prevented you from working or otherwise interfered with your ability to earn a living.
- Mobility devices and other assistive equipment, such as wheelchairs, stairlifts, ramps, handrails, and other equipment to assist you in living independently.
- Rehabilitative services, such as physical, speech, or occupational therapy.
- Household services, like nursing support, meal preparation, or cleaning, to assist you with day-to-day tasks while you heal and/or adapt to your injuries.
Next, you can also claim non-economic damages, consisting of the intangible, but still very real, struggles, setbacks, and challenges you face because of your injuries.
These may include:
- Physical pain your injury causes you to suffer.
- Emotional distress and mental health challenges caused by your accident and injuries, such as PTSD, depression, or anxiety.
- Loss of enjoyment of life due to your injuries, such as being unable to engage in a favorite hobby, sport, or pastime.
- Loss of companionship or consortium with a loved one, due to effects of your injury that interfere with communication, intimacy, or other important aspects of your valued personal relationships.
Occasionally, a skilled lawyer may also have the ability to secure additional payments for you in the form of punitive damages, which Reno courts will sometimes award when the conduct leading to your injury was especially outrageous and wrongful.
Our Knowledge and Understanding Produce Results
At Benson & Bingham Accident Injury Lawyers, LLC, we know which experts to retain for your personal injury case. Oftentimes, it’s necessary to enlist third-parties to help prove your case. Our experience affords us the knowledge and resources required to select the right professional for the job. Experts with professional engineering experience or who specialize in building code violations, for example, can help build and strengthen your case.
We also understand what you must prove to secure compensation. Slip and fall cases fall under the wider umbrella of premises liability law. Cases like these require that premise owners warn guests of slippery substances and fall risks. However, the property owner must have had an opportunity to rectify the situation prior to your accident to face any liability. Proving that an owner failed to inspect the premises can help establish the presence of constructive notice and increase the likelihood that you will receive compensation for your injuries.
Understanding Common Slip and Fall Injuries
Slip and fall injuries range in severity and type. Many people come away from slip and fall accidents with serious—or even life-threatening—injuries. These injuries can lead to decreased workplace productivity, acute and chronic pain, and loss of quality of life.
It’s important to understand some of the most common slip and fall injuries. You’ll be able to better communicate with medical professionals and attorneys if you’re aware of the most common slip and fall injuries. A handful of common injuries that occur as a result of slip and fall accidents include:
- Head injuries
- Hip fractures
- Broken bones
- Sprained ankles and wrists
- Cuts and bruises
- Shoulder dislocations
- Spinal damage
Liable Parties in Slip and Fall Accidents
Determining liability in slip and fall cases requires proof of negligence. Negligence encompasses any scenario where an individual fails to conduct themselves according to prevailing standards of behavior or legal requirements. To prove negligence, a plaintiff must establish all of the following elements:
- That the condition of the property was dangerous
- That the owner of the property knew (or should have known) about the dangerous condition
- That the owner had a reasonable amount of time to rectify the dangerous condition and failed to do so
- That you sustained injuries due to the owner’s failure to deal with the dangerous condition
The Reno area is home to a bevy of businesses and venues. From hip restaurants and enticing retail stores to luxurious resorts, there are plenty of opportunities for slip and fall accidents to occur in a variety of different locations.
Hotels and Casinos
Both Las Vegas and Reno are home to world-class entertainment. Millions of tourists flock to the area every year to explore all that Nevada has to offer. Significant concentrations of locals and tourists alike in hotels and casinos lead to high rates of slip and fall accidents in these locations.
Oftentimes, slip and fall cases can be traced back directly to resorts’ negligence. Guests and visitors should be able to expect safety in these locations. Unfortunately, injuries can and do occur in hotels and casinos on a daily basis. Some common causes of slip and falls at hotels include:
- Equipment like ski lifts and diving boards
- Pool environments where the ground’s surface is often wet and slippery
- Icy walkways or paths during winter months
- Wet tiles or flooring in bathrooms or spas
- Resort activities or excursions
Restaurants
The Reno area is full of delicious, world-class restaurants. Restaurant and cafe patrons are often caught completely unaware by hazardous conditions in these spaces. There are a number of potential causes of slip and fall accidents in restaurants, including:
- Other customers tracking in water from rain or puddles
- Staff spilling liquid materials in dining areas
- Slippery floors in bathrooms
- Poor lighting
Claimants and Damages: What Can You Recover?
If you’ve sustained an injury in a slip and fall accident, seeking legal advice is crucial. It’s the only way to ensure that you seek adequate compensation for your injuries. The attorneys at Benson & Bingham Accident Injury Lawyers, LLC have extensive experience in slip and fall injuries and know how to calculate your total damages amount.
All too often, liable parties try to dodge responsibility by claiming that they were unaware of the conditions that caused your fall. If you’re able to prove that constructive notice was present at the time of your injury, you could receive compensation for the following expenses:
- Past, present, and future medical bills
- Lost wages due to injury
- Loss of earning capacity if you’re unable to earn as much money as you earned prior to your injury
- Incidental expenses
- Pain and suffering
The Cost of Legal Representation
The price of legal representation for your case depends on numerous factors. At Benson & Bingham Accident Injury Lawyers, LLC, we offer a free consultation during which we discuss your options and determine your liability to receive compensation. We handle most cases on a contingent fee basis, which means that our clients aren’t required to provide any upfront payment. They only pay if they receive compensation; we collect our fees from their compensation amount.
Reno Slip and Fall Frequently Asked Questions
And yet, every day throughout Reno, accidents and injuries happen because of the negligence or outright recklessness of a property’s owner or its occupants. Victims of these accidents have a right under Nevada law to seek fair and just compensation for their injuries and losses.
An experienced Reno slip and fall attorney can help those victims secure the compensation they deserve. That process often starts with answering a victim’s questions about the slip and fall accident that injured them, and their legal and financial rights. Below we answer some of the most frequently asked of those questions.
What qualifies as a slip and fall accident?
Most people hear the words “slip and fall” and think, quite reasonably, that it means slipping and falling on a wet floor or an icy sidewalk. To lawyers, however, slip and fall means more than just that one type of accident.
Instead, it includes all falls due to an unsafe condition on someone else’s property. In other words, you don’t need to slip to have a slip and fall claim.
Common scenarios that result in a slip and fall accident include:
- Tripping on debris or obstructions underfoot, like a loose electrical cord or a stray tennis ball.
- Losing your footing on uneven flooring, such as cracked tiles or buckled rugs.
- Stepping into an unmarked hole or dip.
- Losing your balance on a staircase with uneven steps or a loose handrail.
- Falling from a porch or balcony after a railing gives way.
- And, of course, slipping on spilled liquid or an ice patch.
In short, if you fell and got hurt because of a property hazard, then you’ve had what lawyers refer to as a slip and fall accident.
Where can a slip and fall happen?
A slip and fall can happen anywhere, indoors and out. The only requirement for having a slip and fall claim is that someone other than the victim is the owner or legal occupant of the property where it occurred.
Common locations in Reno where slips and falls can occur include:
- Grocery and retail stores
- Hotels and casinos
- Parking lots
- Residential homes
- Restaurants
- Shopping malls
- Events facilities
This list is not all-inclusive, of course. No matter where a fall occurs, it can qualify as a slip and fall so long as the victim is not the owner or legal occupant of the premises.
What’s a Reno slip and fall claim?
A slip and fall claim, simply put, is a legal action seeking compensation for the injuries someone suffers in a slip and fall accident. As a general proposition, the owner or legal occupant of a property will owe monetary damages to anyone harmed by a dangerous condition on that property that the owner/occupant could have taken reasonable steps to prevent or warn the victim about (or both).
Contact an experienced slip and fall attorney right away if you suffered injuries in a fall under those sorts of circumstances.
Can I have a slip and fall claim if I knew about the property condition that caused my fall?
Far too often, Reno slip and fall victims assume they don’t have a case because they blame themselves for not having been more aware of their surroundings, or because they had some knowledge of a dangerous condition. They are often mistaken.
Just because a property owner puts up a sign reading “slippery when wet,” that doesn’t mean the staff shouldn’t dry the floor after heavy rain or set out mats to allow guests to dry their feet. Primary responsibility for safety at a property lies with the property owner or legal occupant. If that party could have and should have taken reasonable steps to keep you safe, then you may well have a slip and fall claim even if you had some awareness of the danger that caused you to fall.
The most reliable way to determine whether you have a slip and fall claim is to talk to a personal injury attorney.
How long do I have to take legal action for injuries I suffered in a Reno slip and fall accident?
Nevada law generally allows personal injury victims, including those hurt in accidentalfalls, to file a lawsuit within two years of getting hurt, but that rule—known as a statute of limitations—has numerous exceptions and conditions that may lengthen or shorten the time available.
If you miss a deadline for taking legal action, you may lose your rights to compensation altogether. For that reason, the sooner you contact an attorney for advice about your slip and fall, the better. Quick action by a skilled slip and fall lawyer can preserve your legal rights and put you in the best position possible to secure maximum compensation.
The property owner’s insurance company wants to settle. How do I know they are offering enough?
If you reported your accident to the property owner, you may receive a call from the owner’s liability insurance company offering you money as settlement of your slip and fall claim (even if you haven’t filed a claim or spoken with a lawyer). This call may come as a welcome surprise since it feels like someone is offering you free money. But remember, insurance companies are not in the business of paying money out of the kindness of their hearts. If an adjuster from the property owner’s insurance company contacts you, it’s a sign they’re worried you have a case.
Never sign anything or agree to an unsolicited offer from the property owner’s insurance company without first talking to an experienced slip and fall lawyer. Chances are, any offer made to you directly will fall far short of the amount of money you deserve to receive.
Many factors can affect the value of your slip and claim, and often, insurance companies deliberately under-value those factors in making a settlement offer directly to you.
With the help of an experienced attorney, you can determine the amount you should receive from the insurance company by evaluating (among other factors):
- The severity of your injuries and their impact on your everyday life
- The estimated duration of your recovery and your long-term prognosis
- The amount of money the injury has caused you to spend
- The impact of the fall and injury on your income.
In most cases, you can obtain a far higher payment from the insurance company (and anyone else financially obligated to pay your damages) by leaving negotiation of your settlement to an experienced slip and fall attorney.
I fell and got hurt at a Reno casino hotel, and they offered to comp my stay. Should I accept?
Be careful. It might seem like good customer service for the casino hotel to offer you freebies as a way of saying “we’re sorry,” but you need to stay on your guard to make sure you don’t unintentionally give up your legal rights.
Before saying yes to any offer of in-kind compensation for your troubles—a free stay, tickets to a show, and so on—speak with an experienced Reno slip and fall lawyer to learn how to protect yourself. The value of anything offered to you by casino hotel staff is sure to be less than the amount you have a right to receive as compensation for your injuries.
How long does a Reno slip and fall case take?
Every slip and fall case differs.
The duration of your claim could depend on a wide variety of factors, including:
- The number of parties involved
- The amount of money at stake
- The need for investigation before taking legal action
- The availability of evidence
- The degree of dispute over key issues like liability and damages
By and large, you do not control most factors that affect the timeline for your case. You do, however, have total control over an important first step in any slip and fall claim. The sooner you contact an experienced Reno slip and fall attorney for a free consultation to discuss your claim, the faster the rest of your claim can play out.
I fell and got hurt at my friend’s house. Does that mean I have to sue my friend?
Not necessarily. If you act quickly, a skilled lawyer may have the ability to negotiate a settlement of your claim with your friend’s homeowner’s insurance carrier, without the need for first filing a lawsuit.
You might hesitate to call a lawyer because you fear it means ruining your friendship with the owner of the house where you got hurt. In many cases, however, that need not happen. Your friend carries insurance to protect against just this sort of situation. Talk to a lawyer today about your concerns.
Do I really need a lawyer to get paid for my slip and fall injuries?
The short answer is yes. If you want to obtain the compensation you deserve for injuries you suffered in a slip and fall accident in Reno, you need an experienced Reno slip and fall attorney representing you in any legal action you take, and in negotiations with insurance companies and defense lawyers.
Practically speaking, you cannot hope to get the money you deserve unless a lawyer handles the process of:
- Gathering, reviewing, and organizing evidence relevant to your claim
- Interacting with insurance representatives and defense lawyers
- Analyzing and calculating the full scope of your damages
- Drafting the necessary paperwork to take legal action in Reno courts
- Negotiating a settlement of your claim if possible
- Representing you in court, including taking your case to trial.
Most Reno slip and fall injury attorneys work on a contingency basis, which means they do not get paid unless you get paid. You pay nothing up-front or as the case goes along.
Protect Your Rights By Speaking for Free With Our Reno Slip and Fall Lawyers Today
You deserve fair and just compensation for injuries you suffered in a fall on someone else’s property in Reno. Contact an experienced slip and fall attorney today at Benson & Bingham Accident Injury Lawyers, LLC, for a free case consultation to learn about your rights and options.
Partnering with Benson & Bingham Accident Injury Lawyers, LLC
At Benson & Bingham Accident Injury Lawyers, LLC, we understand that the recovery period following a slip and fall accident is both stressful and confusing. Oftentimes, it’s not immediately obvious who is responsible for your injuries and covering the medical expenses that you incur following the incident.
Our Reno personal injury attorneys are well-equipped to address your concerns. For more than fifteen years, we’ve prided ourselves on providing our clients with compassionate, understanding legal representation. Our work is informed by over a decade’s worth of experience, dedication, and consistent client communication.
If you or a loved one has been injured in a slip and fall incident, call Benson & Bingham Accident Injury Lawyers, LLC at (775) 600-6000, or contact us online, to schedule your free consultation and speak with one of our experienced personal injury attorneys today. We also serve clients in Lake Tahoe, Sparks, and Carson City.
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