Shopping at a grocery store such as Safeway, or any other grocery store, should never include a slip and fall. However, grocery stores have several aisles containing products that can leak or drop onto the floor to spill liquids. If you slip and fell at a Safeway store, or any other grocery store, you should immediately speak with the store manager to file a report. Then, it is up to you to collect the evidence required to file a claim. A state-licensed personal injury attorney can help process a claim filed in civil court.
How a Slip and Fall Can Hurt You
Falling to the floor at a Safeway, or any other grocery store, can leave you with serious injuries. Long, deep cuts on the arms and legs come from sharp objects stored on the shelves of aisles devoted to cookware. Large bruises develop because of the contact made with the side of shelves, as well as the strong impact made with the solid rubberized floor.
One of the most common types of injuries associated with a slip and fall at a grocery store is a sprained or broken wrist. The instant we realize that we have lost our balance, instinct takes over when we use our hands and arms in an attempt to break the fall.
Although reaching out to cushion the blow prevents serious damage to other parts of the body, both wrists become vulnerable to serious injury. A hard tumble to floor can produce a broken wrist that is severe enough to call 911 for emergency medical care.
What Are Some Grocery Store Slip and Fall Injuries?
If you slipped and fell in a grocery store, like Safeway, you may have sustained some injuries. You can recover any damages for these grocery store slip and fall injuries through a personal injury claim.
Some injuries you may get, or may have gotten, from a slip and fall at a grocery store like Safeway include:
- Broken or fractured bones,
- Concussions or traumatic brain injuries,
- Pain and suffering,
- Emotional suffering,
- Back or spinal cord injuries,
- Lacerations,
- Head injuries, like a fractured skull,
- And more.
To prove these grocery store injuries were actually caused by your slip and fall, you will need to gather evidence. You will also need evidence to prove how much your claim is worth. The helpful evidence you may want to gather includes:
- Doctor’s notes,
- X-rays, MRIs, or other scans,
- Test results,
- Prescriptions,
- Invoices,
- Treatment plans,
- Ambulance bills,
- Estimated future medical expenses,
- And more.
If you are unable to gather the evidence on your own, a slip and fall attorney may be able to help you. Slip and fall attorneys may know what evidence you need to best support your claim.
Response to a Slip and Fall at a Grocery Store
How you respond to a slip and fall at Safeway, or any other grocery store, goes a long way towards determining how you proceed with a legal case. If you can move around comfortably, the first order of business is to talk to the store manager to explain what happened.
Stores employ department managers for a large number of departments. If the store manager is not at the store, reach out to one of the department managers, preferably the department manager responsible for the products stocked in the area where you fell. If you slipped and fell outside the store, then the store manager is the employee you should contact.
After filing an incident report with a store employee, return to the scene of the slip and fall to collect evidence. If you are incapable of staying on your feet because of one or more injuries, ask a friend or a family member to come to the store to gather evidence.
The more evidence you collect, the better chance you may settle your claim out of court. Working with an experienced personal injury lawyer helps you apply the pressure required to get Safeway to compensate you for your injuries.
How to Collect Evidence
Videos and photographs of the slip and fall scene provide you with the physical evidence you need to pursue a claim against Safeway, or any other grocery store. You want to shoot photographs of the cause of the slip and fall, as well as any other issues that might have contributed to your injuries. Using the security footage captured by the store typically requires your attorney to file a request with a civil court to obtain the video for analysis.
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*Disclaimer: The content of this article serves only to provide information and should not be construed as legal advice. If you file a claim against Safeway, or another party, you may not be entitled to any compensation.
