How Often Do Slip and Fall Accidents Occur in Tampa Grocery Stores?
Slip and fall accidents can happen anywhere—often when the victim is least expecting. Over 8.5 million people in the U.S. are hurt in falls every year, and another 35,000 die from fall-related injuries.
Grocery stores and other retail establishments are hot spots for these types of accidents. While there are no published statistics about how often these types of accidents occur, they happen often involving both employees and shoppers. In fact, they happen far too often due to the negligence of these establishments and sometimes the employees who work there. Suppose you suffer a slip and fall in a grocery store such as Publix, Winn Dixie. Target, or Walmart. In that case, the experienced Tampa slip and fall attorneys at Matthews Injury Law are ready to stand up for your rights.
Causes of Grocery Store Slip and Fall Accidents
One reason grocery store slip and fall accidents happen so often is that they can happen to individual shoppers as well as employees. On average, American shoppers go to the grocery store at least six times each month, totaling over 332 trips to the supermarket every year. In addition, according to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), slips, trips, and falls are the third most common reason for lost-workday injuries in wholesale and retail trade establishments.
Another reason they are common is that there are many different types of potential hazards in the environment, including:
- Bunched, poorly positioned, or lack of floor mats
- Slippery floors from leaks and spills
- Items falling from grocery store shelves
- Aisle obstructions from boxes, pallets, and food
- Cracked and uneven outside pavement
- Moisture tracked in from outdoor rain, snow, ice, or slush.
Is the Grocery Store Liable for Your Slip and Fall?
Falling at a grocery store doesn't necessarily mean that the store is liable for your injuries. Certain conditions must be met to hold them accountable. Slip and falls are governed by premises liability laws. Under these types of laws, property owners - whether grocery store owners or homeowners - have an obligation to keep their premises safe for those who are legally allowed to be there. However, the expectations placed on them must be reasonable. They are likely liable if they knew or should have reasonably known about a hazard but didn't take steps to protect others from the hazard. For example, a store would be liable if:
- An employee walked by a spilled and broken jar of pickles without cleaning it up or placing a caution sign near it.
- Management received several complaints that the parking lots were extremely icy, causing customers to nearly fall, yet they did nothing to correct the problem.
If the injured party's Tampa slip and fall lawyer can prove that the store owner, manager, or agent knew or should have reasonably known that a danger existed, they could be held liable for the victim's damages.
Did You Suffer a Fall? Contact a Matthews Injury Law Tampa Slip and Fall Attorney Today
Whether you slipped and fell at Publix, Winn Dixie, Target, Walmart, or somewhere else, it's in your best interest to have a Tampa slip and fall lawyer review the circumstances of your fall. The store could owe you compensation for your injuries and damages. At Matthews Injury Law, we provide all potential slip and fall clients with a no-obligation case consultation. Call 941-877-5800 or contact us online today to schedule yours.