Slip and Fall Accidents in Restaurants: Who Is Responsible?
When you go to a restaurant as a customer, you have the right to expect reasonably safe conditions, and the restaurant staff has a duty of care to uphold them. Unfortunately, wet floors and other hazards can create dangerous conditions that lead you to slip and fall, sometimes causing serious injuries. Navigating lawsuits that involve slip and fall accidents in restaurants can be difficult, but with the help of the right personal injury lawyer, you can understand who is liable and what can be done to get the compensation you deserve for your injuries.
How restaurant negligence determines premises liability in a slip-and-fall accident in restaurants
Like in many personal injury lawsuits, slip and fall accidents in restaurants come down to negligence. Did the restaurant know about the dangerous conditions before the accident occurred, and were there any actions that could have been taken to prevent the accident from happening?
The same questions can be asked of the victim. A personal injury attorney like Kimberly Raab, partner at Richmond-based injury firm Burnett & Williams, can help you navigate who is at fault for your injuries.
Often, liability falls on the operator of the restaurant. Most commonly, slip and falls are caused by wet floor conditions, and if the restaurant and its employees did not do their due diligence to alert customers to the hazard, they could be held liable for the accident.
“If a restaurant is mopping floors, or a spill happens and employees don’t clean it up and put up a wet floor sign, they could be found liable for any injuries that occur,” says Raab.
Sometimes, the fault is split between the restaurant and the property owner if the restaurant is a tenant. “Say a wet floor originated from a leak in the roof, and the operator had reported the leak to their landlord,” says Raab. “If the landlord failed to fix the leak in a timely manner to prevent accidents and potential hazards, they may be found liable for the injury caused by a wet floor.”
In some cases, however, the victim may be at fault for causing the accident. “In cases that involve someone who is behaving recklessly, say if a victim was running, they are generally found to be at fault, regardless of the circumstances that created the hazard or if the restaurant owner took proper safety measures,” Raab explains. “There is also such a thing as ‘open and obvious’ hazards that victims are reasonably expected to avoid, such as visibly wet floors with proper signage or areas in contact with standing bodies of water like swimming pools.”
However, even if the accident wasn’t the victim’s fault, there are some elements that could cast doubt on liability. “Insurance companies may attempt to claim that you were wearing unsafe footwear with inadequate grip, or that you were distracted,” says Raab. “If an accident happened outdoors, they may point a finger at weather conditions, even if it was not actively raining at the time of the accident. Or if you did not file an incident report and seek immediate medical attention, they may attempt to claim that your injuries are not as serious as you claim.”
It is important to remember that some states, including Virginia, have what is known as a contributory negligence law. This means that if the victim is found to be even 1% liable for their injuries, they could be barred from receiving compensation of any kind for their damages. “For example, even if a restaurant was negligent in cleaning up a spill, but the victim was running, the court could deny the personal injury claim on grounds of contributory negligence,” explains Raab.
Your legal options for a slip and fall injury claim due to dangerous conditions in a restaurant
A personal injury lawyer will attempt to argue that the restaurant knew about the slippery conditions that caused the slip and fall and failed to act in a timely manner to remedy them. They will also argue that you, as the victim, played no part in causing the accident.
First, your personal injury attorney will draft a demand letter outlining any evidence you have of who is liable and the amount of damages you are seeking compensation for, such as medical expenses and pain and suffering. They will then send this demand letter to the insurance companies for the insurance adjusters to evaluate. The process often involves back-and-forth negotiation, sometimes lasting weeks or months, and will hopefully result in a settlement both sides agree to.
However, in some instances, your attorney and the insurance company will not reach an agreement on fair compensation. If this happens, your case will go to trial to be heard by a judge and/or jury. Premises liability cases involving disputed liability or multiple liable parties (such as a tenant and a landlord) are less likely to be resolved through settlement because of their complexity. However, a personal injury attorney will argue your case and stand up for your rights in the courtroom to get you maximum compensation for your damages.
Contact Burnett & Williams to be your personal injury lawyer for your restaurant injury
“If you or a loved one has been injured in a Virginia slip-and-fall in a restaurant, contact us today for a free consultation,” says Raab. “We will review your case and determine if we are the right fit to get you the compensation you deserve.”