Whenever you visit a store, restaurant, or other establishment open to the general public in California, you have certain expectations about the premises. For example, you expect the floor and surrounding grounds to be reasonably free of hazards, such as trip, slip, or fall dangers. But what happens when this doesn’t happen?

In many situations, someone might stumble or narrowly avoid a serious injury. But occasionally, a customer or member of the general public gets seriously hurt from these dangerous conditions. When this happens, they deserve full and fair compensation for their injuries, yet this compensation isn’t always offered.

If this has happened to you, consider getting in touch with a Maison Law slip-and-fall attorney. Our legal professionals have plenty of experience handling trip, slip, and fall cases and will make sure you get the maximum amount of compensation as allowed by California law. We know how such a simple event could result in potentially life-changing injuries. To set up a consultation, contact us today. There’s no cost or obligation to talk to us about your case.

Types of Trip and Fall Injuries

Trips, slips, or falls can result in injuries from a minor sprain and strain to traumatic injuries, including:

Calculating the Value of a Slip and Fall Case

Most trip and fall settlement offers can be categorized into three categories:

Low settlement offers: These are usually small incidents with minor injuries, like sprains and strains. Medical bills are typically small, and most victims don’t have to miss much work for their injuries (assuming they miss any work at all).
Moderate settlement offers: These include accidents that have more serious injuries that can require immediate medical attention and even hospitalization. Most injuries are treatable, allowing victims to make a full recovery. That said, these injuries could lead to significant medical bills and more than a few days of missed work.
High settlement offers: These involve serious, traumatic injuries, many of which are life-threatening or lead to permanent changes to the body, including disability. These settlement offers are much higher because long-term medical care is often required and the victim’s ability to work may be significantly affected. Lastly, it’s possible that the injuries are the result of a defendant’s reckless or egregious conduct.

Factors That Can Affect the Settlement Value

The value of a slip and fall case depends on several factors, from the severity of the injury to the way that injury affects your daily living and your ability to work. The permanency of the injury can also affect how much your case is worth. Other factors that help determine the value of a case include:

Liability: The more evidence that shows who’s liable for the slip and fall, the more the case is worth to the plaintiff. The level of egregiousness of the defendant’s conduct can also increase the potential settlement value.
Plaintiff’s level of fault: California is a pure comparative negligence state, which means any plaintiff recovery will be reduced by the amount of the plaintiff’s level of contribution to their injuries. Even if a plaintiff is 99% at fault for their injuries, they can still collect 1% of the compensation they would otherwise be entitled to receive.
Plaintiff’s medical history: The more health problems the plaintiff has, the harder it will be to argue the slip or fall injured them. For instance, a defendant could argue the plaintiff’s back pain is caused by a pre-existing back problem and not the slip or fall.
Permanency of the injuries: The longer an injury takes to heal, the more the case is worth. Permanent injuries can dramatically increase the value of a case given the need for a lifetime of medical care and years of reduced earnings.

Settling a Case With a Demand Letter

Settlement negotiations can begin when the at-fault party’s attorney or insurance company reaches out to the slip and fall victim. But what often happens is that the victim has to take the first step to settle their claim. This first step usually consists of writing a demand letter.

How to Write a Demand Letter

The demand letter is a letter that describes the incident leading to your injuries, the amount of money you want to settle your claim, and the legal arguments and facts to support your position. The demand amount should be higher than the actual amount you’re willing to settle for because of the counteroffers from the insurance company during negotiations. A good demand letter will also include supporting documents, such as medical records, photos, and video of the accident (if available).

How a Slip and Fall Lawyer Can Help With Settling a Case

If you decide to hire a slip-and-fall lawyer to represent you during settlement negotiations, you can expect the following services:

Identification of liable parties: There may be business or government entities that are potentially responsible for your injuries that you don’t realize, such as a third-party contractor who maintains or cleans the premises or a silent owner of the business where you got hurt.
Damage estimation: With the help of expert testimony, medical records, and economic analysis, we can calculate your potential damages that factor in both immediate and long-term medical needs, as well as limitations to your career as a result of your injuries.
Acquisition of expert reports: Insurance companies won’t accept what you say your damages are unless it’s backed up with an expert opinion. These can come from doctors, safety professionals, and occupational experts who your lawyer can contact and work with to maximize your settlement potential.
Negotiation on your behalf: Whether it’s with the liable party’s lawyer or their insurance company, having an experienced negotiator is invaluable for understanding defendant tactics used to justify low-ball offers and deflect liability.
Legal representation: If settlement talks break down, you need to be ready to go to trial. Having a lawyer handle your settlement talks means you already have someone who’s familiar with your case and is ready to take things to court.

Recoverable Damages If the Case Won’t Settle

If settling with the property owner’s insurance company isn’t possible, then filing a slip-and-fall personal injury lawsuit may be the next option. In doing so, you’ll be able to recover compensation for one or more of the following types of damages:

Economic damages: These are damages to reimburse you for your out-of-pocket medical costs, lost wages, and loss of future earning potential.
Non-economic damages: These are subjective, non-compensatory damages that are difficult to calculate due to their undefined nature. These often include psychological damages, such as pain and suffering, emotional distress, and loss of consortium.
Punitive damages: These only come up when a defendant’s conduct is particularly egregious. The goal of punitive damages is to punish the defendant for reckless or intentional wrongful behavior.

Contact a Slip and Fall Attorney from Maison Law

Slip and fall cases can be tricky. Sometimes, it’s difficult to decide who’s legally liable for the dangerous condition that led to the injury. Other times, the at-fault party will try to argue the victim was being careless and therefore is primarily responsible for their injuries. Whatever the hurdle, Maison Law’s slip-and-fall lawyers can help you build the strongest case possible and negotiate a fair settlement on your behalf. To learn more about how we can help, contact us to schedule a free consultation and case review.

What to do if a Slip and Fall Settlement Offer isn’t Enough