New York gets its fair share of rain and snow. This often leads to wet and slippery roads and sidewalks. Although wet weather doesn’t hinder our daily life, it can cause dangerous and slippery conditions for pedestrians and bicyclists in New York. Slippery conditions on wet sidewalks and pavement can cause catastrophic injuries.
A slip and fall on wet sidewalks and pavement can cause serious injuries to your body, especially to your back, head and knees. These types of injuries take time to heal and recover. Serious injuries can lead to unexpected medical expenses and other financial burdens. It is important to know that slip and fall accidents do not occur solely because of sidewalks and roads being wet, it is often due to the potholes, cracks, uneven concrete, and bad ramps which make conditions when walking or cycling more dangerous, especially when they are wet. However, slip & fall accidents on sidewalks and roads occur even without wet conditions from rain or snow. A recent survey conducted among pedestrians across the United States have shown that nearly a quarter of them have fallen on uneven or cracked pavements. The risk for slipping and falling is compounded when these sidewalks and pavements are wet, causing serious injuries.
What do you do if you slip or fall on wet sidewalks or pavement?
If you have been injured due to a slip & fall accident caused by wet conditions to sidewalks, roadways, or pavement it is important to seek medical attention first. Once you have been treated, contacting a New York slip and fall injury attorney is the next step to evaluate your case and to let you know the next steps.
Can you sue someone for slipping and falling on wet sidewalks or pavement?
Maintaining public sidewalks, pavements and roads are the responsibility of the town or city where these sidewalks and pavements are located. Safety hazards must be managed by the municipality and efforts must be made to protect the public from slipping and falling, even during times causing wet conditions. If your injury is caused by a safety hazard that was not maintained by the town or city, there is a possibility you can sue the municipality. The best way of knowing who you can sue for your injury is to hire a winning slip and fall injury lawyer who has the experience and track record to file a claim against a city or municipality and obtain the compensation you deserve.
How would a slip and fall injury lawyer help?
The primary job of a slip and fall injury lawyer is to prove that you were injured due to the carelessness or negligence of the town or city for lack of providing safety precautions. This type of case can be challenging and needs a slip and fall attorney that handles these cases often and has winning results.
Also, a slip and fall injury attorney will know the best way to estimate and calculate the value of the case to seek compensation to cover all financial costs related to your injury. This includes medical expenses, loss of income, pain, and suffering together with other out-of-pocket expenses.
Common challenges of suing a town, city or municipality:
There are some underlying challenges of suing a municipality, city or a government authority:
- Sovereign immunity – refers to a blanket immunity to the government against injury claims regardless of the nature of injury or its cause. The rules vary from state to state, however, are essentially in place to protect the government. Your slip and fall injury lawyer can guide you about the rules in New York state.
- Limited claims – regardless of the compensation you deserve, there are pre-decided limits on the claims against municipality. This often discourages people from going forward with filing a claim. Ask your slip and fall injury lawyer about the restrictions on your claim against the municipality in New York state and the best case scenario for your claim.
- Extensive paperwork – As expected, suing a city, state, or municipality comes with its share of paperwork. Moreover, even a minor glitch in any document can lead to the municipality ignoring your claim completely. A slip and fall injury attorney can help you put the right paperwork together and mitigate that challenge for you.
If you or someone you know has been injured in a slip and fall accident cause from wet conditions to sidewalks, roadways or pavement, you need a winning law firm to fight for your rights and get the compensation you need and deserve. Contact Siler & Ingber today by either calling us on 1-877-529-4343 or completing our online form on this page to schedule a free consultation and case evaluation with one of our experienced slip and fall injury lawyer. We received no fee unless we win.