Can You Receive Compensation From a Store if You Are Injured?
You run into your local grocery store to grab some last-minute items for dinner when, suddenly, you take a nasty fall. The floor has a sticky substance, making it slippery, a spill that was never mopped up. A tragic experience, many people do not realize that they may be entitled to compensation for their injuries and other losses.
In this article, our TN slip and fall lawyers discuss how to pursue legal action following an injury in a store and the type of compensation that you may be eligible to recover.
Duty of Care
Those who enter a property are placed into one of three categories. The category that an individual is placed in will determine a landowner or occupier’s level of responsibility.
Visitors may be placed in any of the following categories:
- Invitees: These visitors are owed the highest level of care. Those who enter a property for business purposes fall into this category. Store owners have a legal obligation to inspect the property to ensure a patron’s safety.
- Licensees: Usually a social guest, these visitors are owed a lower duty of care than invitees. Whether it be a commercial or private residence, landowners should warn licensees of any defects on the property.
- Trespassers: Under Tennessee law, a property owner does not owe a trespasser a duty of care except to not intentionally or wantonly cause an individual injury. However, property owners owe child trespassers a different level of care.
Proving Liability
To recover compensation for your injuries, you will need to prove that the store owner had a legal obligation to keep you safe and failed.
To prove that the store owner was negligent, the following elements must be present:
- The owner owed you a duty of care
- The owner violated that duty
- Your accident was caused by the owner’s breach of duty
- As a result of your accident, you suffered injuries and other measurable losses
Damages in a Slip-and-Fall Case
In a slip-and-fall, you will need to provide tangible evidence that the store owner is legally responsible for your injuries. If the owner’s negligence can be proven, then you will most likely be able to recover compensation for any losses sustained by your injuries, known as damages.
Damages are a monetary award that is meant to help the victim become “whole” again following an accident.
Lost Income
If you have suffered injuries in a slip-and-fall, you may be unable to work for a certain amount of time. Besides present lost income, if your injuries are severe, you may be entitled to recover future lost earnings as well.
Medical Expenses
In a premises liability case, you may be entitled to compensation for ambulatory services, surgeries and procedures, doctor’s visits, prescription costs, and rehabilitation therapy. If your injuries are severe or permanent, you may even require home modifications.
Pain and Suffering
Pain and suffering the emotional and mental distress following an accident or injury. Pain and suffering compensation encompasses a majority of non-economic damages in a personal injury claim.
Slip and Fall Lawyers Providing Aggressive Representation to Injury Victims in Tennessee
If you have suffered an injury in a slip and fall, you are likely overwhelmed by an insurmountable stack of medical bills. At Raybin & Weissman, P.C., we understand how daunting medical expenses can be when you are unable to work. Let us help you receive the compensation you deserve. To schedule your complimentary, no-risk consultation, contact us online or by phone.