You may pull into a Louisville Marathon gas station to top off the gas tank, take a bathroom break or grab some refreshments. The last thing you should have to worry about is being able to stand on your own two feet. Yet, it’s your feet that can be taken out from under you walking into any gas station.
A slip-and-fall on a puddle on the floor of a food mart or a grease spot in the parking lot can drop you to the ground and leave you to deal with a painful injury. The injury may hurt for a few days and go away or it could lead to a break or dislocation that might require several surgeries over a lifetime.
At Kentucky’s Kaufman & Stigger Law Firm, PLLC our attorneys believe victims of accidents shouldn’t have to worry about and cover the costs of their own recovery. If you’ve been seriously hurt after a trip or a fall caused by the negligence of a business owner contact us for a free consultation and an honest look at your options.
Louisville Gas Station Slip-And-Fall Dangers
Gas stations like Marathon can be convenient locations to satisfy your snack and thirst cravings and keep your car motoring on. That’s why they call them convenience stores.
These places can see a lot of vehicle and foot traffic nearly 24 hours a day. Unfortunately, that can lead to a lot of potential hazards winding up on the floor or out by the pumps outside.
In a gas station, you can’t fall many places without sticking something hard like a tile floor, a counter, a curb or a cement pylon. Bones and joints can absorb an impact and fracture very easily. The injuries can rob a victim of the ability to walk in the short term or even leave a permanent disability.
Slip-And-Fall Common Injuries
A slip-and-fall usually sends a victim backward to land on their back or side. These are a few of the most common injuries treated by emergency room doctors:
- Traumatic Brain Injuries (TBI) – The head can be the first place to hit, striking the floor, a shelf, or a cement island. A TBI can cause blurry vision, memory loss, and even make the victim forget how the accident occurred. The Alzheimer’s Association also reports that a severe TBI can even increase the odds of developing Alzheimer’s later in life by over 4.5%.
- Skull Fractures – A break in the cranial bone. This can lead to swelling and bleeding from the nose and ears. In some cases, neurosurgery is required.
- Spinal Cord and Spinal Structure Damage — damage to the spinal cord can rob victims of control of parts or all of their bodies.
- Broken Bones and Dislocations — Elbows and hips can take the brunt of a backward fall. Hip fractures and dislocations can be an especially debilitating result.
Trip-And-Fall Common Injuries
In trip-and-fall accidents, victims are generally launched forward. These are just a few of the most common injuries that result:
- Hand, Wrist, and Arm Injuries – These injuries are common because as victims fall forward they instinctively flail their arms out to try to catch themselves.
- Facial Fractures – Victims can miss catching themselves and take a blow to the face and jaw. The nose is especially vulnerable.
- Mouth Injury – Impacts can leave teeth loosened, broken, or knocked out.
A Store Owners Responsibility in a Slip-And-Fall Accident
Anyone who owns or operates a business is required to provide a safe path up to and inside their store. They can be liable when a customer falls or trips over a hazard. These property owners or their employees are usually well aware of an obstacle and if they didn’t know, they could have it during a proper inspection of their stores.
If a child spills chocolate milk across an aisle, that obstacle should be spotted during routine inspections by a worker and cleaned up in a reasonable amount of time. A hazard should also be marked by warning signs until it can be cleaned or repaired.
If you fall and suffer a serious injury you can file a premises liability lawsuit and hope to recover every cost for medical treatment, potential surgeries, medical equipment, and especially any care needed down the road.
A claim for damages can also help replace paychecks you might have missed while having to be absent from work. This civil claim can even demand money for extreme physical and emotional pain. For some victims, the loss of freedom and mobility due to a disability caused by the accident can lead to depression and require psychological counseling.
Contact a Louisville Slip-And-Fall Accident Attorney
After a fall at a gas station or any other business contact an attorney who will protect you from insurance companies and other lawyers who will be trying to dismiss your injury and your right to compensation. You may have to face the physical consequences of a property owner’s negligence, but proprietors should have to cover every financial consequence of their mistake.
Talk to a Kentucky Slip-And-Fall Attorney you can trust to be on your side and fight for your fair compensation. The attorneys at Kaufman & Stigger, PLLC, have that knowledge and a combined 100 years’ experience in helping clients get the compensation they’ll need to make a full recovery. To discuss your case, contact Kaufman & Stigger, PLLC today, by clicking here to contact them online.
