Rough Missouri winters usually bring with it dozens of victims of slip and fall accidents. When these occur in a business parking lot, it can sometimes be difficult to determine who is to blame, if anyone is to blame at all. If you have fallen in a parking lot and were seriously injured, contact a Missouri personal injury attorney today. If the owner of that lot did not take the proper measurements to ensure your safety, than he could be held liable for your injuries.
Missouri law does allow property owners some time to clear away hazards that are caused by natural sources like ice and snow. The reasoning being that you, as a reasonable person, should be aware of the potential risk and that the property owner should not be held liable for you taking a chance. If however, the event has long passed and a reasonable amount of time to clear the ice or snow, then they may be accountable if you were to slip in their parking lot. A Missouri personal injury attorney would need to hear all of the details to determine if your claim is valid.
The best thing you can do for your claim is to take pictures as soon after the incident as possible. Also try and get the contact information for any witnesses. Ice melts, so you want to make sure you have evidence on film of its existence before it goes away. Also try and have the business owner fill out an accident report to show that they are aware of the incident and risk of injury.
In some cases it may be hard for your Missouri personal injury attorney to decide who the claim should be filed against. While a free standing building most likely has complete control over their parking lot, a strip mall may have the responsibility delegated to the building owner. There may even be a case made against a plowing company if they have been contracted to clear a parking lot but were negligent in their responsibilities. Your attorney will need to investigate all of these possible scenarios before making a decision on who to name in the lawsuit.
A Missouri woman’s slip and fall claim on black ice in the parking lot caused the building owner to settle the case for $187,500 plus an additional $36,000 for medical expenses. Since this was a free standing building, liability was easy to decide. It was the negligence of employees who had hosed the area and created black ice that caused the woman to fall and suffer a severe tibia fracture. Even so, the ultimate responsibility falls on the shoulders of the business owner for not properly supervising his employees’ activities.
Where ever and however it occurs, you should always speak with a Missouri personal injury attorney if you are injured on someone else’s property. Owners have a duty to protect people from harm and if they fail in this duty, they should be held liable for the injury that causes.
photo credit: Jeff Kubina via Flickr
