If you are seriously hurt after a fall down stairs that was caused by a landlord’s negligence, you should talk to a lawyer. A lawyer can help you hold an at-fault property owner fully liable for your recovery costs.
But if you aren’t sure if you need a lawyer after suffering a fall, you have an easy and free way to find out. The Fresno slip-and-fall lawyers at Maison Law offer a free case consultation to all accident victims. It’s a confidential, no-obligation way to determine if you can get justice by handling an injury claim yourself or if you could need the protection of a skilled attorney to secure every benefit possible as you heal.
Who Is Responsible If I Fall Down the Stairs at My Apartment Complex?
Under California’s premises liability laws, property owners and those responsible for property management are legally required to keep the grounds around an apartment complex as safe as possible. They must show a “duty of care” towards tenants and visitors.
They must monitor for damage around stairwells. They must act in a reasonable amount of time to repair broken handrails and crumbling cement on a stair step. On wooden stairs, they must fix broken steps and replace rotting wood.
Landlords are responsible for the hazards they create, or their employees create. They must also inspect for the hazards other residents leave behind. If a tenant spills a drink down the stairs and you or a family member suffers a slip-and-fall injury, your landlord can be held liable for your recovery costs.
The property management company will have liability insurance protection, but getting fair support from a faceless insurance company can prove frustrating. A Fresno slip-and-fall lawyer is your safeguard against unhelpful insurance adjusters who want to blame you for your accident and wiggle out of accepting liability.
Do I Need a Personal Injury Lawyer After a Fall at My Apartment Complex?
If your fall only results in some minor scratches, you may not need the help of a personal injury lawyer. If your injury results in a serious injury like a broken bone, neck and spine damage, or a Traumatic Brain Injury, a lawyer could be a necessary safeguard.
When the cost of recovery escalates, commercial liability insurance companies begin to get nervous about how much they will have to pay in compensation. Instead of moving to help injured victims and their families, they can, instead, look for ways to avoid taking the blame for an accident. They may try to shift the blame to you or say the landlord couldn’t have known about the issue. They could also cast doubt on how serious your injury is and offer you too little to pay all of your bills.
Your Fresno premises liability lawyer is your defense against these tactics. Your lawyer would fully investigate your case and gather evidence and witness testimony. After building a strong case based on proof, an insurance adjuster will have a much harder time rejecting your claim. Your lawyer also fights to get you the most in compensation possible. If an insurance adjuster extends a “lowball” settlement offer, your lawyer will reject it and demand more.
Compensation Available to Apartment Residents Injured in a Fall Down Stairs
If your fall was caused by a landlord’s negligence, you may ask for help with every hardship you’ve faced in recovery from an injury. You would seek help with your economic damages and your non-economic damages.
Economic damages include things like bills for a hospital stay and a surgeon’s fee. Non-economic damages would include things like the “loss of enjoyment of life” you experience if an injury, like a broken leg, keeps you from family activities and from the hobbies and sports you love.
Your Fresno slip-and-fall lawyer would be seeking compensation for every damage you suffered, including a few things you probably didn’t know could earn you more in a settlement check.
These and other hardships should all be the responsibility of your landlord and the landlord’s insurance provider:
- All current medical expenses and those expected in the future.
- The lifelong expenses associated with a permanent disability.
- Compensation for the physical pain suffered and perhaps chronic pain lasting a lifetime.
- Compensation for emotional trauma. A patient’s enjoyment of life may be lost while experiencing anxiety, depression, and PTSD symptoms resulting from a slip-and-fall incident and a difficult recovery.
- All wages and benefits lost at work while the patient is unable to perform job duties.
- Travel costs accumulated to attend doctor visits while immobile and unable to drive.
Contact a Fresno Slip-And-Fall Lawyer
The easiest way to see if a personal injury lawyer can help you earn more for your accident claim is to take advantage of a free consultation with Maison Law. We will be upfront with you about your case, and let you know if you can hold an apartment complex owner responsible. It’s also a no-risk opportunity to determine if a skilled lawyer can help you maximize what you earn in a slip-and-fall settlement check.
If you do require Maison Law’s help in getting what’s fair from an insurance company, you won’t need any upfront money to hire us. We don’t get paid unless we win your case for you. Then, our fee comes out of the settlement money you receive.
