Poor Lighting and Hidden Hazards: How Dimly Lit Areas Can Lead to Slip and Falls
Poor lighting can conceal unstable or uneven flooring, as well as other obstacles, from a business’ customers. If customers can’t see well enough to anticipate hazards on the premises, they can sustain injuries in a slip and fall accident, likely leaving the property owner liable.
Slip and fall accident injuries can have a considerable impact on your finances, career, quality of life, and health. With the help of an expert premises liability lawyer, you can seek compensation for your damages if a negligent property owner fails to provide adequate lighting to avoid falls.
The slip and fall accident attorneys of Cellino Law will work with you to document your damages, establish the property owner’s liability, and secure a fair settlement. Schedule a free consultation with our team by calling (888) 888-8888 or reaching out through our online form.
The Importance of Adequate Lighting to Avoiding Slip and Fall Accidents
Property owners are legally responsible for maintaining their premises in order to prevent foreseeable hazards from harming their clients, employees, and other invitees. In many cases, a neglected issue results in a slip and fall accident. This is commonly caused by poor lighting.
A property owner who fails to replace a burnt-out bulb, install overhead lighting, or generally ensure that potentially dangerous locations, such as stairwells and parking lots, are well-lit can create conditions that are conducive to slip and fall accidents. Common hidden hazards include:
- Parking lot curbs
- Potholes
- Stairs
- Ramps
- Debris
- Uneven flooring
- Icy, greasy, or wet surfaces
Consider a situation where a business owner decided to forgo additional lighting on the landing of a long flight of enclosed stairs. A patron missed the first step after the landing because they couldn’t see it. As a result, they slipped on the step, fell backwards, and struck their head.
Had the patron been able to clearly identify where the stairs began, their injury likely could have been avoided. Proper lighting is critical because it allows people to safely navigate changes in elevation or flooring texture on the premises, as well as circumvent slippery and cluttered areas.
New York Slip and Fall Accidents Can Result in Severe Injuries
Depending on what kind of surface you landed on and how far you fell, you could potentially suffer catastrophic injuries in a slip and fall accident on a property with insufficient lighting conditions. Injuries can also result from striking a sharp, hard, hot, or rough surface as you fall.
Slip and fall accident injuries can run the gamut from a rug burn and bruised elbow to a life-threatening head wound or paralyzing spinal cord injury. In the long-term, devastating injuries can lead to scarring, cognitive impairment, loss of motor function, chronic pain, and other issues.
In a New York slip and fall accident, you are at risk of sustaining injuries such as:
- Neck and back injuries
- Deep lacerations
- Broken or bruised tailbone
- Abrasions
- Contusions
- Traumatic brain injuries
- Muscle strains or sprains
- Fractured and broken bones
- Spinal cord injuries
While you may be inclined to sheepishly brush off what appears to be a minor injury, don’t refuse medical assistance. The true severity of your injury may not manifest until hours or days after the slip and fall accident, so it is important to have a prompt, impartial medical evaluation.
If an insurance company questions your account of your injuries or tries to say that you let your injuries get worse before you sought treatment, you can refute this with a record that you received immediate medical care. This can protect the value of your premises liability claim.
Recovering Compensation for Damages in a Premises Liability Lawsuit
Property owners who don’t provide adequate lighting on their premises leave clients vulnerable to severe injuries. To recover compensation, a plaintiff needs to show the owner violated their duty of care by neglecting to eliminate foreseeable issues on the property, resulting in injury.
For many, slip and fall accident injuries entail additional financial and emotional consequences, known as damages. In order for a loss to be considered a damage, and therefore worthy of compensation, it must be linked to injuries acquired in the slip and fall accident. For example:
- Medical bills
- Lost wages
- Reduced earning capacity
- Emotional distress
- Loss of quality of life
- Wrongful death
In a personal injury lawsuit, most monetary costs can be reimbursed as economic damages. Economic damages typically have a corresponding receipt, which makes it simple to calculate their value. However, not all damages come with a clear price tag.
Non-economic damages, which compensate for emotional or intangible losses, are quantified through less traditional methods. For example, a personal injury lawyer might use a client’s pain journal to argue the dollar value of their pain and suffering.
Choose Cellino Law to Represent You in Your New York Slip and Fall Claim
As long-time New York personal injury attorneys, our team at Cellino Law has cultivated a reputation for respectful, diligent, and effective service. We believe that our outstanding results provide evidence of our ability to hold reckless defendants liable on behalf of our injured clients.
Our team will take on key tasks like investigating if the property or the property owner had a history of neglect, preparing statements, handling inquiries from bill collectors, compiling evidence to meet the burden of proof, and negotiating a fair settlement for your claim.
Contact the Experienced Slip and Fall Accident Lawyers of Cellino Law Today
At Cellino Law, you can feel confident that you will receive the full benefit of our decades of service to injured New Yorkers. This includes a vast network of resources, an understanding of the legal process, specialization in handling slip and fall claims, and sharp negotiating skills.
Our team of skilled personal injury attorneys is dedicated to maximizing compensation for our injured clients. We understand that slip and fall accident injuries often cost more than a bit of comfort or convenience, such as your career prospects, physical health, and family finances.
Don’t wait to pursue a claim if you have been injured in a slip and fall accident on a poorly lit property, as evidence in these cases can disappear easily. To schedule a free consultation with a slip and fall accident attorney, call Cellino Law at (888) 888-8888 or use our online form.
Content checked by the personal injury attorney Timothy Cellino
Timothy Cellino
As a family man and a trial attorney, I pride myself on winning cases and serving the community.
I understand the function of a jury, how juries arrive at conclusions, and the role that the jury plays in administering justice. I know how to win cases. You can find us in Manhattan, Buffalo, Melville, Rochester, Brooklyn, The Bronx, Queens and other locations throughout New York.
