As we finish out the calendar year of 2018, the last several months are often filled with dangerous weather and house parties to celebrate holidays and professional achievements. Without fail, some of these parties involve someone slipping on a hazard and hurting themselves.
Most people may assume that the homeowner automatically bears legal responsibility for the injury, since the harm occurred in their home. While this is true sometimes, it is not true all of the time.
Before you file a personal injury claim over a slip-and-fall accident in someone else’s home, make sure that you carefully consider all the legal issues at hand. If you file a poorly supported claim, you may not only miss out on the compensation that you need, you may damage your relationship to the host you sue.
Social host liability for slip-and-fall accidents
Social hosts have an obligation to avoid endangering their guests. If a host invites guests into their home, then they must either eliminate all known hazards that may cause injury, or at least identify them and make sure that guests understand the dangers and how to avoid them.
If a host knows that one of the steps on the staircase leading up to the front door is slippery, then the guest must either address the situation directly and make that step unslippery, or must properly warn the guests of the danger.
If a guest knows that a hazard exists, then the legal liability for slipping and falling transfers mostly to the guest. This is precisely why business place out “slippery when wet” signs when an employee mops the floors. If guests are properly informed of danger, then they assume the responsibility to avoid that danger, unless it is not possible to avoid.
Don’t wait to begin building your legal strategy
Especially when dealing with other private individuals, building a legal strategy is very important. The details of how and why you suffered you injury matter a great deal and may make or break your claim, ultimately.
If you believe that you deserve compensation for your slip-and-fall injury, or if you are simply unsure who is ultimately responsible for the medical expenses, you must build a clear, strong legal strategy that addresses your needs. With a full understanding of the legal issues at hand, you can remove the emotional and socially awkward elements of your claim and focus on seeking full compensation for your injuries and losses.