The steps you take immediately following a slip-and-fall accident will have an impact on what happens in the future. While your health and well-being is more important than anything else, there are other things you need to keep in mind during this challenging time.
Here are some of the basic steps to take:
- Call for help: You should never assume you can get up, walk it off and receive treatment later on if your injuries don’t heal. It’s better to be safe than sorry, so call 911 or ask someone to do so for you. The sooner you treat your injuries, the better chance you have of making a full recovery.
- Notify the store or property owner: This isn’t easy to do if you have a serious injury, but it’s important to keep in mind. You want to make it clear to the store owner or property owner that you were part of a slip-and-fall accident and may have injuries. This can help protect against a situation in which you are accused of suffering the injury somewhere else.
- Document everything: The information you collect will come in handy down the road, so make sure you go overboard with respect to the details. Focus on things such as: the circumstances causing the fall, any dangerous conditions and signs warning you of trouble.
- Follow the advice of your medical team: Again, you don’t want to assume that you can let your injuries heal without medical assistance. This is particularly true of serious injuries, such as those to your head, back and/or neck.
You may find it difficult to follow these steps after a slip-and-fall accident, but you should do your best to do so.
Once you’re feeling better and understand the impact of your injuries on your life, now and in the future, you can turn your attention back to the accident. Your goal is to determine what went wrong and who was at fault. This will go a long way in helping you decide what to do next, such as whom to hold responsible and if you can seek compensation for your injuries and other damages.