Not too long ago, there were crowds of people waiting outside of stores and malls for Black Friday sales. News stations did not fail to report the rowdiness created by these crowds. From cutting in line to pushing; short tempers, violence, and injuries have unfortunately become part of what we call Black Friday.
The more crowded a place is, the more there is a chance that an accident will occur. Holiday shoppers encountered heavily crowded malls and stores. What happens when someone decides to buy a drink from the mall food court and spills some of that drink inside of a store that you happen to be walking in? If this slippery substance goes unnoticed and unmodified by store personnel, you’re chances of injury has increased. What do you do in the event that you encounter this slippery substance or any other tripping hazard and injure yourself because of a fall?
Popular crowded shopping areas in South Florida include:
• Sawgrass Mills Mall (City of Sunrise in Broward County)
• Aventura Mall (City of Aventura in Miami-Dade County)
• The Galleria Mall (City of Fort Lauderdale in Broward County)
• Coral Square Mall (City of Coral Springs in Broward County)
• Hard Rock Hotel and Casino (City of Hollywood in Broward County)
• South Beach (City of Miami Beach in Dade County)
• Dolphin Mall (City of Sweetwater in Miami-Dade)
• Town Center Mall (City of Boca Raton in Palm Beach County)
• City Place (Palm Beach County)
Premise Liability
Slip and fall injuries occurring inside of a business establishment fall under what is called premises liability. It is important to understand how the law functions with regard to premise liability. You should never think that these things cannot and will not happen to you. Unfortunately, slip and falls occur quite frequently.
Business Invitee
The status of a person that goes into a store or mall is called business invitee. For the most part, a business invitee enters a store because he will buy items (i.e., conduct business dealings). The premises owner owes certain duties to a business invitee including: keeping the premises in a safe condition, conducting inspections to look for hidden dangers, and warning invitees of known and existing dangers. Thus, if you walk into that store wherein another business invitee dropped some liquid, and consequently fall and obtain injuries, you may have a valid claim against the store owner because a duty to keep the premises safe for you and other invitees existed.
Protect Your Claim
If you are injured in a Florida shopping mall or store, you must take certain steps to protect your claim. The most important thing is always one’s health. In the absence of obvious injury, such as a broken arm, it is typical that one would like to avoid going to the emergency room or doctor. It is important to understand that even if you feel no pain immediately after the fall, this does not mean that in the later days your body will not feel pain. If treatment is delayed, it may seem as if the incident and injury was not serious. Thus, even when the adrenaline caused by the accident may hide the true impact received by your body, it is important to seek medical attention regardless.
The next important step to take is to report the injury. If you fall inside of a store, reporting it to the store manager is what you need to do. If the fall occurs in the general mall area, you may report your incident to the security department. Always remember to obtain a copy of this report. It is also important to take pictures of the object and the area where the accident occurred, as well as obtaining the phone numbers and names of any witnesses. The goal is to get all that you can which relates to the accident.
If you or a loved one has been injured due to an accident that may have been a result of property owner negligence, then you need to contact a law firm to find out what your option are. Contact us and tell us what happened. Our Fort Lauderdale accident attorneys will gladly go over your case with you and let you know the options you have to seek compensation for your injuries.