Accidents occur every day, some of which can be avoided. If someone suffers from injuries due to a slip-and-fall accident, he or she may be able to recover damages.
In order to build a solid claim, the injured person must be able to show negligence on the part of the property owner or management. There are a few things that he or she should know about this process.
Liability
Some individuals may have the wrong assumption that the owner of a property is automatically responsible for a slip-and-fall accident. Particularly in the state of Georgia, that is not always the case. First and foremost, liability must be determined. There are three main instances in which a property owner is liable:
- The property owner or an employee must have caused or created the unsafe surface.
- The facility knew of the dangerous conditions but did not try to rectify them.
- If maintaining the facility reasonably, the property owner or employee should have known about the dangerous surface.
If an individual can prove any of these things to be true, it may be possible to build a solid case.
Comparative negligence
In most Georgia personal injury cases, the accused party will try to place some blame on the claimant in an effort to create comparative negligence. According to Georgia’s modified comparative negligence rule, individuals whose own negligence contributes to an accident will receive an award amount less the percentage of fault they contribute to the incident.
Evidence
In order to build a successful case and limit the amount of comparative negligence that a property owner may claim, individuals should collect as much evidence as possible. Accident reports are key in such instances, as well as any eyewitness accounts and medical records. Individuals who do not seek proper medical attention may damage their case.