Georgia Slip and Fall Attorney
When people think of dangerous accidents that cause serious injuries, they usually think of car accidents, construction accidents, fires, or catastrophic building collapses. But something as simple as a slip and fall can severely injure you, resulting in pain, monetary losses, mental trauma, medical bills, and more.
If you have been hurt in a slip and fall accident, you could be able to seek compensation for your damages. The person or organization that was responsible for causing your slip and fall injuries could be required to compensate you for your losses. A Georgia slip and fall lawyer can help you through the legal process.
Damages for a Slip and Fall Accident in Georgia
A slip-and-fall accident can cause severe injuries to victims. For instance, if you slip on a spill at a grocery store, you could strike your head and end up with a traumatic brain injury (TBI). Head injuries can result in a number of issues, such as memory loss, personality and mood changes, cognitive processing issues, balance and coordination problems, and other problems, according to MedlinePlus.
In addition to the injury itself, you could deal with mental and emotional suffering from the accident. You could deal with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), which is when you might suffer from flashbacks, anxiety, fear, depression, and other mental trauma related to the accident.
Injuries also require medical treatment, which can be expensive to pay for. For example, you could receive a medical bill for thousands of dollars that you can’t afford to pay. You could even have ongoing medical bills for many months, years, or the rest of your life.
Some injuries are so severe that victims are not able to work for a time or could be unable to return to work at all. This means lost income or an inability to earn a living in the future.
All of these damages could be compensated through a personal injury claim or lawsuit. If you have evidence that proves that another party caused your slip-and-fall accident, then that party could be required to pay for your losses.
A slip and fall attorney in Georgia can help you determine who is responsible for your accident and who to file your claim or lawsuit against. They can help you seek compensation from an at-fault party.
Damages caused by a slip and fall accident in Georgia:
- Pain and suffering
- Lost income
- Reduced earning capacity
- Medical bills
- Rehabilitation expenses
- Mental trauma
- Cost of mental health treatment
- Lost life enjoyment
- Permanent injury or scarring
Types of Slip and Fall Accidents
Slip and fall accidents can happen in a lot of different ways and for a lot of different reasons.
- You could be at a neighbor’s house and slip on a spill left on the floor and land on a sharp object.
- A retail store worker could have mopped the floor recently and forgotten to leave out a wet floor sign. You could then come along and slip, striking your head or breaking a bone.
- You could be walking down the sidewalk outside of a government building and slip on a patch of ice that the government workers failed to salt.
In addition to slip and fall accidents, you could also be injured in trip and fall accidents, which are very similar. For instance, you could be at an apartment complex and trip and fall on a loose step. Maybe you are shopping at a mall and trip on some items left out in the middle of an aisle.
No matter what type of slip and fall or trip and fall accident you were hurt in, someone could be liable for what happened to you. For example, if you were hurt at a grocery store due to worker negligence, the grocery store owner could be liable for your injuries and losses.
If you are hurt at a neighbor’s house, your neighbor could be liable for the damages you sustained as a result of your injury. A Georgia slip and fall attorney can help you figure out who might be liable for your accident.
Understanding the Personal Injury Claims Process
When you have been hurt in a slip-and-fall accident, you may wonder what your options are. The first thing you may think about is, “How do I seek compensation for a slip and fall accident caused by someone else?”
The legal way to seek compensation for an injury caused by another person’s negligence is through a personal injury claim or lawsuit. The process works as follows:
Determine What Happened
The first step in the personal injury claim process is to figure out exactly what caused your accident. Whether it was a spill on the floor at a store or an overly waxed floor at your neighbor’s house, the cause of your accident needs to be determined.
Gather Evidence
Once you determine the cause of your slip and fall accident, you need to gather evidence to support your case.
For instance, if your neighbor’s leaky faucet was to blame for water on the floor that caused you to slip, you need to gather evidence. You could collect statements from witnesses, take photos of the spill or what caused you to slip, and even write down your own account of what occurred.
You should also gather medical evidence of your injuries as well as documentation of any other losses you suffered. All of this evidence will be submitted with your personal injury claim or lawsuit.
File Claim Paperwork
When you bring a claim against an at-fault party, you will typically be filing an insurance claim. For example, if you are submitting a personal injury claim because your neighbor was responsible for your slip and fall, you would submit the claim with their homeowner’s insurance company. You will need to complete the paperwork and provide evidence of your losses.
If filing a lawsuit in court, you will need to complete and submit the paperwork to the court. Evidence would also be submitted with the lawsuit.
Insurance Negotiations
If you file an insurance claim, the insurer will be heavily involved in the process. It will be necessary to communicate with the insurer on a regular basis, provide requested information and documentation, and negotiate compensation. Insurers are not operating in your best interests, though; they are worried about their own interests and financial stability.
Obtaining Compensation
To obtain compensation for a personal injury caused by a slip and fall, you could either receive a check from an insurance company or you could be awarded compensation through a personal injury lawsuit. A jury could award you damages if you win your case.
How Can a Georgia Slip and Fall Attorney Help?
When faced with the thought of filing a personal injury claim on your own, you could be feeling anxious and overwhelmed. A legal undertaking is not something you want to think about following a serious injury accident. But to recover compensation, you would have to file a claim or lawsuit. However, you don’t have to do it alone.
A slip-and-fall lawyer in Georgia can be beneficial throughout the personal injury claims process for a variety of reasons.
Legal Advice
A lawyer can advise you on what your options are, as well as give you an idea of what the outcomes could be. They outline your paths and also let you know what actions come next.
Assist With Evidence Collection
An attorney can help by guiding you through the process of collecting evidence to support your injury claim or lawsuit. For instance, they help you understand what types of evidence are needed, such as witness statements, accident reports, and medical documentation. Some of the evidence they can even help you gather.
For example, an attorney can interview witnesses, reach out to medical facilities for specific paperwork, and document your version of evidence.
Legal Paperwork
Lawyers are familiar with all types of legal processes, so they know exactly what kind of paperwork to complete to get your claim or lawsuit underway. Your lawyer can also verify that paperwork is completed correctly, which could minimize the chances of a claim denial based on paperwork problems.
They Understand the Laws
A lawyer is an asset to a personal injury case because they know the laws in Georgia. They know that you have three years in Georgia to file a personal injury claim in most cases, according to S.C. Ann. § 15-3-530. They know the laws related to premises liability, negligence, and wrongful death.
Lawyers can help you understand the laws and follow them in an effort to reach your goal of obtaining compensation for an accident you didn’t cause.
Be Your Advocate
A lawyer will also be there to protect your rights and advocate for your best interests. They will always have your best interests at heart, protecting you from bad faith insurance practices, unfair court proceedings, or incompetence. All you have to do is look at our testimonials to see why our clients like our legal help.
Handle Insurance Communications
Dealing with insurance companies is a huge part of the process of seeking compensation after an accident. Insurers can be difficult to communicate with, and understanding what they need can be challenging. They are also working in their own best interests, so a lawyer can protect you from any unfair dealings.
Go to Court for You
The court is rare but it can happen for a personal injury case. If an insurance company is not dealing fairly with you or if it’s simply in your best interests to file a lawsuit in court, your lawyer can help you with the entire court process for a slip and fall accident case.
They can file court paperwork, attend hearings and represent you, and they can even litigate your case. Going to trial may seem intimidating, but your lawyer would prepare you for the process beforehand.
Types of Injuries Due to Slip and Falls
Many people think of a slip and fall as a minor accident in which a person obtains a few bumps and bruises, but that’s not always the case. A slip-and-fall accident can be very serious, depending on the circumstances.
For example, a slip and fall can cause severe head trauma, which can result in brain damage. A slip-and-fall accident can also result in broken bones, such as broken hips or broken arms.
Depending on what a victim lands on, they could even sustain serious puncture wounds. For instance, if they land on something sharp. Organ damage could also occur depending on what the person lands on and how hard the impact was.
Your injury’s severity does affect your personal injury claim because more serious injuries will likely result in extensive losses. For instance, if you sustain a head injury in an accident, you could be unable to work ever again due to cognitive issues. You could also struggle to enjoy your life as you once did.
A list of injuries a victim could sustain from a slip and fall accident in Georgia:
- Eye injuries
- Broken bones
- Head injuries
- Organ damage
- Lacerations
- Spinal cord injuries
- Amputations
- Back injuries
- Torn muscles and ligaments
Contact the Anastopoulo Law Firm Today for Legal Help
If you have been in a slip-and-fall accident in Georgia, you could be seeking legal assistance with a claim or lawsuit. A Georgia slip and fall attorney can help you figure out legal paths after your accident, which could include seeking compensation from a negligent party that caused your slip and fall injury.
Filing a claim or lawsuit could be the option for obtaining the money you need after an accident. You could have many damages that warrant compensation to make you whole again. Reach out to our firm for a free consultation, so you can figure out your legal choices today.