No one wants to deal with a nasty slip or fall, but they are a part of life, and you’ve recently slipped and you don’t think you’re at fault for it, you’ll want to consider hiring a personal injury lawyer in Etobicoke as soon as you can. Dealing with the law surrounding personal injuries can be a complex one to navigate, and with a personal injury lawyer, you’ll be able to maximize the compensation that’s available to you.
A slip and fall injury can lead to a lot of emotional and physical trauma that can cause major disruptions in your life. You’ll have to deal with things like:
- Ongoing pain in your body
- Loss of income
- Embarrassment
- Constant trips to the hospital or to rehab
Slips and falls can really take their toll on the mental well-being of whoever they happen to, and unfortunately, these types of injuries occur more often than you’d think. There are usually no police officers that will come to the scene of a slip and fall injury, and it can sometimes be difficult to figure out who is to blame for it.
When do you draw the line between your own carelessness and an obvious hazard on someone else’s property? It always helps to get a personal injury lawyer in Etobicoke involved if you’re experiencing any confusion regarding your slip or fall.
After your slip or fall, you’ll want to get as much evidence as you possibly can. If you have a smartphone, take a number of photos and videos of the entire area where your injury occurred. Try taking the photos and videos at different angles, and also see if there are any other people that witnessed the accident. When it comes to evidence, more is better, and you can’t go wrong with snapping as many photos as you can.
Make note of when and where the injury happened. Again, if you have your smartphone handy, jot down the exact time and place that it occurred. Write down the specifics of the address, and even take photos of signage in the area. Every piece of evidence that you gather at the scene of the accident can be used in your favor.
If there were any hazards that you think caused the accident, take a bunch of photos of it. If you don’t take photos, then there won’t be much evidence that can be used in your favor. If it was icy that day, take clear photos of the ground. No one wants to accidentally make the mistake of not taking any photos that they can use for evidence for their claim.
Navigating A Personal Injury Case
When approaching a personal injury case, it’s always best for a lawyer to assume the worst-case scenario. As you’re going through a personal injury, it’s always more helpful to get more compensation as opposed to less compensation. Medical bills can sometimes get out of hand, and you never know what other types of rehab you’ll require along the way.
Certain injuries might also arise later that you never experienced right at the scene of the accident. If you banged your head during your slip or fall, symptoms of a concussion can sometimes begin to arise a week after that, and if you didn’t make note of that during your initial claim, then you’ll certainly want to do so as soon as you can. Getting fully evaluated by a medical practitioner after your slip and fall is important to do so that you get a better idea of the full extent of your injuries.
Personal Injury Negligence
If you’re not able to establish liability against the defendant, then there is a higher chance of losing the case. To figure out if the owner of the property was negligent, you’ll have to gather and use evidence that will support your case. Sometimes people make the assumption that a defendant had cameras in the parking lot that they slipped and fell in. Even if they did, no defendant is going to want to provide you with video evidence that can be used directly against them.
The defendant in the case will most likely deny responsibility for everything that they possibly can. If you approached the property owner and asked them for the video evidence in the cameras on the lot, some excuses you might hear are:
- The footage deletes itself every evening
- The cameras in the parking lot are dummy cameras to prevent theft
- The cameras aren’t set up to the proper directions
- The footage isn’t clear
Many slips and falls happen without a property owner ever even being aware of it. Most people aren’t even aware that they could develop a case after slipping or falling on someone else’s property. Getting a personal injury lawyer in Etobicoke is one of the best things you can do to further your personal injury case in your favor. In addition to all of the evidence that you gather after a slip or fall, you’ll want to also keep a paper trail of every document that is related to your case.
Liability
Another very important factor to be aware of with slip and fall cases is that you’ll have only 60 days to provide the property owner with notice that you’re pursuing a claim for damages against them. You’ll also have to provide that notice to the contractor that is supposed to be maintaining the parking lot in which the personal injury occurred. If you don’t provide any notice, then there is a chance that your case will get thrown out before it even begins.
This law isn’t very helpful for plaintiffs, but it is very helpful for defendants. The law was most likely introduced so that there aren’t so many plaintiff claims being introduced.
Getting a personal injury lawyer in Etobicoke is one of the first things you’ll want to do after you’ve slipped or fell on someone else’s property. A personal injury lawyer will be able to guide and navigate you through your case in a way that will get you the amount of money you deserve.