Slip-and-fall accidents can happen to anyone, anywhere, and at any time. These incidents can lead to significant injuries and financial burdens, but in some cases, the injury may not manifest immediately.
In these situations, sometimes victims are unsure whether they can or should still file a claim to get compensation for their injuries. Keep reading to learn more about what can be done after a delayed slip and fall injury.
Determining Whether You Have A Slip And Fall Claim
Proving negligence is the crux of a slip-and-fall case. When we file a lawsuit against a property owner, our primary concern is whether the at-fault party took reasonable steps to prevent the accident. To prove negligence and win your lawsuit, you must prove the following four elements:
- Duty of care. The property owner or occupier was legally responsible for keeping the premises reasonably safe.
- Breach of that duty. They failed to fix or warn about a dangerous condition they knew about or should have known about.
- Causation. That failure caused your fall and your injury.
- Damages. You suffered a loss a court can compensate, such as medical bills, lost income or pain and suffering.
As a visitor to a property, you have certain rights regarding your safety. The owners or occupiers of a property have a duty to ensure that the property is adequately protected from danger. This means that they must take steps to maintain the property and fix any known issues that could lead to injury.
If the owner or occupier of a property has breached their duty of care and their negligence has led to your injury, you may have a valid compensation claim.
The Delayed Injury Conundrum
Sometimes, an injury's symptoms or resulting pain are not immediately apparent. This can make it difficult to identify whether your slip and fall accident was, in fact, the cause of the injury.
Identifying Delayed Symptoms
Concussions, soft tissue and back injuries, and hairline fractures often do not hurt on the day of the fall. Adrenaline masks pain for hours, and older adults in particular can walk away from a fall and only notice the damage days later. Watch for headaches, dizziness, nausea, numbness, fatigue and pain that gets worse instead of better, and write down the date each symptom started.
In the days following the incident, you should:
- Pay close attention to any changes in your physical or mental condition
- See a doctor if you experience any unusual symptoms
- Keep a detailed log of your symptoms and discuss them with your healthcare provider
Impact On Liability And Compensation
Depending on the type of injury, in some cases, it can be difficult to prove the property owner's negligence and calculate the extent of your pain and suffering in order to recover compensation.
However, a successful personal injury claim is possible even in the case of a delayed injury. To help support your claim, it’s critical you take the following steps as soon as possible.
- Seek medical care as soon as you notice symptoms. This will ensure your well-being, document the extent of your injury, and establish the link between the injury and the fall.
- Collect any evidence or documentation you have about the accident. This could include any photos you may have taken at the scene, witness statements, and all of your medical records.
- Contact a personal injury lawyer as soon as possible. Delayed injury claims can sometimes be more difficult than a claim filed immediately after an injury, so it’s important to hire an experienced attorney before speaking to insurance companies or the property owner.
Statute Of Limitations
The statute of limitations is the deadline for filing suit. In Florida a negligence claim, which is what a slip and fall is, must be filed within two years of the date the cause of action accrues, under Florida Statute 95.11(5)(a). That two-year period applies to causes of action accruing after March 24, 2023. A fall before that date is governed by the old four-year period, so the date you fell decides which deadline you are under.
A delayed injury does not extend the deadline on its own. Florida measures the period from accrual, and in a premises case that is normally the date of the fall rather than the date a symptom appeared. Waiting to see whether the pain resolves is the most common way a good slip and fall claim runs out of time.
A different deadline applies if you fell on government property. Florida Statute 768.28(6)(a) requires a written claim presented to the agency within three years before you can sue. For a state agency the claim also has to be filed with the Department of Financial Services; municipalities and counties are exempt from that second filing. Miss the deadline that applies to you and the case is dismissed no matter how strong it was.
Legal Procedure And Timelines
How long your case takes depends on how serious the injury is, how long treatment runs, and how hard the insurer fights liability. Most slip and fall claims resolve without a trial, but a case that has to be tried can run a year or more from the date suit is filed. No lawyer can promise you a result, and no two premises cases move at the same speed.
Dealing with Insurance Companies
Once we have filed your claim, we will then begin dealing directly with the property owner’s insurance company through their insurance adjusters.
An insurance adjuster investigates the incident, assesses your injuries, and determines the value of your claim. They are representatives of the insurance company, and their primary goal is to settle the claim quickly and for a low amount.
Some important points to keep in mind when dealing with insurance adjusters are:
- They are not your friends. They may present themselves as friendly and helpful, but their main goal is to save the insurance company money.
- Once you’ve retained an attorney, you shouldn’t make any statements to them or sign any documents until the attorney has approved first.
Calculating Damages And Compensation
A delay in filing an injury lawsuit should not have any impact on your ability to get compensation from the negligent party. If you have a case, the property owner should still be liable to pay for your medical bills, loss of income, and any other damages you may have suffered due to your injuries.
To calculate the damages and compensation for your delayed injury fall claim, you should consider economic and non-economic issues and gather the necessary documentation to support your case.
Types Of Damages
Economic damages are quantifiable financial losses that result from your injury. They include:
- Medical expenses, meaning the cost of treatment, medication, imaging and therapy, past and future.
- Lost wages and lost earning capacity, meaning the income you missed and any lasting reduction in what you are able to earn.
- Out-of-pocket costs, such as travel to medical appointments or paying someone to do work around the house you can no longer do.
Non-economic damages are more subjective and difficult to quantify as they have no direct monetary value. They include:
- Pain and Suffering: Physical and mental anguish resulting from your injury.
- Loss of Enjoyment: Due to the injury, limited ability to participate in activities, hobbies, or social events.
Determining Claim Worth
To calculate the value of your claim, you need to consider economic and non-economic damages. A simple formula to help you estimate your compensation amount is:
Total Compensation = Economic Damages + Non-economic Damages
To calculate economic damages, you should gather all relevant documentation showing your medical costs, lost wages, and out-of-pocket expenses. This documentation can help you determine the exact amount of your financial losses.
Estimating non-economic damages such as pain and suffering can be more complex, as it depends on the individual's circumstances and the severity of the injury. There’s no "one size fits all" formula.
Adjusters sometimes apply a multiplier to economic damages, often somewhere between 1.5 and 5, based on how serious the injury is and how long it will affect you. Treat that as negotiating shorthand rather than a rule of law, because no Florida statute or jury instruction contains it. You also have to account for your own share of fault. Florida is a modified comparative negligence state under Florida Statute 768.81: your recovery is reduced by your percentage of fault, and under section 768.81(6) a person found more than 50 percent at fault for his or her own harm recovers nothing at all.
Speak To An Attorney About Your Claim
In slip-and-fall cases involving delayed injury, it’s always your best bet to hire an experienced personal injury attorney instead of dealing directly with a property owner’s insurance company. The injury attorneys at Weinstein Legal Team handle slip and fall claims and deal with the property owner's insurer directly, so you are not negotiating your own case.
Our personal injury attorneys also work on a contingency fee, which means you don’t pay any costs or fees unless we win your case. If you’d like to speak with an attorney about your slip and fall injury, click here to schedule a free consultation or call us today at 888.626.1108.
