San Bernardino Slip and Fall Accident Lawyers

Restaurants, nightclubs, and bars in the downtown San Bernardino Entertainment District are enjoyable places to visit in the evenings and on weekends. Tourists and locals alike enjoy the various cuisines and amenities that the city has to offer. However, when property owners fail to maintain their premises safely and carefully, slip and fall accidents become highly likely.

Slip and fall accidents often occur out of the blue when a person least expects them. Unlike motor vehicle occupants, slip and fall victims are at an extreme disadvantage. They do not have the benefit of an outer covering or shell protecting them in an accident situation. Therefore, if they strike the ground violently, they are more likely to suffer permanent injuries and ongoing medical complications than a car crash victim.

If you suffered injuries in a slip and fall accident in San Bernardino, you have legal options available. In addition to seeking immediate medical treatment after your slip and fall accident, you should consult with a knowledgeable personal injury attorney as quickly as possible.

The experienced San Bernardino slip and fall accident lawyers at Bentley & More LLP can meet with you to discuss your accident circumstances and help you develop a plan for pursuing fair monetary compensation and damages. Our legal team has recovered millions of dollars on behalf of our accident victim clients, including victims of slip and fall accidents.

Let us help you pursue the economic recovery you deserve for your slip and fall injuries.

For a free case evaluation and legal consultation with a San Bernardino slip and fall accident lawyer, call us or contact us online for more information.

If you work for another law firm with an overwhelming injury claim, we can help. We regularly accept referrals, as our firm has the resources to pursue high-stakes injury cases and protect the rights of clients throughout the process. Reach out if you want to learn about possible referral arrangements with Bentley & More LLP.

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What Legal Duty of Care Does a Property Owner Owe to Their Visitors?

The legal duty of care that a property owner owes to a visitor depends upon the visitor’s status on the property at a particular time. If a property visitor is present on the premises without the owner’s permission, that individual is likely a trespasser. In general, property owners do not owe trespassers a legal duty of care unless the property owner is aware of their presence.

Licensees, on the other hand, are typically social guests who enter the premises with the owner’s permission—but for their own purpose. For example, a social guest who visits someone’s home is likely a licensee. Property owners have a duty to warn about or correct known dangerous hazards on their premises, within a reasonable period, for the benefit of their visitors. This duty includes cleaning up spills promptly to prevent fall accidents from occurring.

Finally, business invitees enter certain premises to benefit the property owner, like grocery store shoppers or bar or restaurant patrons. Individuals in a parking lot or parking garage may have entered the property as invitees.

Property owners owe business invitees the highest available legal duty of care. Specifically, owners must warn about or repair known hazards on the property within a reasonable timeframe. However, property owners also have a duty to regularly inspect their premises for unknown dangers. They have a further duty to warn about or correct those dangers within a reasonable time after becoming aware of them.

In some instances, a property visitor’s status on the premises can change. For example, a visitor may enter the premises as a business invitee or social guest, but they may become a trespasser if they remain on the premises after-hours or without the property owner’s permission.

When a property owner violates their legal duty of care and a slip and fall accident occurs, the property owner and their insurance company may be liable for paying the accident victim monetary compensation and damages.

The experienced San Bernardino slip and fall accident lawyers at Bentley & More LLP can determine if the property owner likely violated their legal duty of care in your slip and fall case. If so, we can take the necessary measures to file a claim with the appropriate insurance company and pursue the monetary recovery you deserve in your case.

Common Slip and Fall Injuries that Accident Victims Suffer

In many slip and fall accidents, individuals—especially children and the elderly—are likely to suffer severe injuries. Debilitating injuries are common if an accident victim falls on macadam or concrete with a significant amount of force. How the accident victim falls and lands on the ground will also determine the injuries they ultimately suffer.

Common injuries that slip and fall accident victims sustain include:

• Road rash injuries
• Soft tissue contusions
• Broken bones
• Rib fractures
• Internal organ injuries
• Permanent scars
• Spinal cord damage
• Paralysis injuries
• Traumatic head and brain injuries

If you or someone you love suffered severe injuries in a recent slip and fall on someone else’s premises, you should speak with the experienced San Bernardino slip and fall accident lawyers at Bentley & More LLP as soon as possible. In addition, you should focus on receiving the medical treatment you need to fully recover from your injuries.

This medical treatment may include:

• Going to the hospital emergency room or urgent care facility immediately after your slip and fall accident
• Following up with a family doctor or primary care physician
• Treating with a specialist, such as a neurologist or orthopedic doctor
• Attending physical therapy sessions
• Undergoing a medical procedure, such as a surgery
• Attending sessions at a pain management facility to help you with your symptoms

Once your medical treatment is complete, our legal team can submit a settlement demand package to the insurance company on your behalf and begin negotiating your claim with the property owner’s insurance company. If the insurance company does not make you a fair settlement offer, we can file a lawsuit in the California Court System for you and start litigating your case.

Where Do Slip and Fall Accidents Usually Happen?

Slip and fall accidents in San Bernardino can happen both outdoors and indoors. Outdoor slip and falls routinely occur on sidewalks, in parking lots or parking garages, and on driveways. These accidents frequently happen when property owners fail to maintain these areas in a reasonably safe condition and allow deep cracks, potholes, and spalling to develop. Visitors may then trip and fall on these defects—especially when lighting conditions on the property are poor.

Indoor slip and fall accidents typically result from food and liquid spills on the floor. Therefore, slip and fall accidents at restaurants, grocery stores, nightclubs, and bars are relatively common. Slip and falls may also occur on residential premises, especially when property owners fail to maintain carpeting and other flooring materials.

If you sustained injuries in a slip and fall on another person’s premises, the experienced San Bernardino slip and fall accident attorneys at Bentley & More LLP are ready to assist you.

We can file a claim with the insurance company, negotiate the claim on your behalf, and pursue a fair settlement offer from the insurance company adjuster. If the adjuster refuses to take your case seriously and makes you a fair offer, we have the option of filing suit in the California Court System and pursuing a favorable trial verdict or binding arbitration result for you.

What Damages Can I Recover for My Slip and Fall Injuries?

There is no disputing that many slip and fall accidents lead to catastrophic and permanent injuries for accident victims. The nature, extent, and permanency level of these injuries are primary factors when evaluating a personal injury claim or lawsuit from a monetary perspective.

Other factors that influence the types and amounts of monetary damages slip and fall accident victims recover include:

• The cost of the accident victim’s medical treatment
• The body part or parts injured
• The pain and suffering that the accident victim endured
• Whether or not the accident victim may need to undergo a future medical procedure or additional treatment, such as physical therapy
• Whether the accident victim suffered a permanent injury
• Whether the accident victim may rely upon around-the-clock caregivers for ongoing medical treatment and care

Some of the most common examples of monetary compensation that slip and fall accident victims may recover include damages for their:

• Past and future related medical expenses
• Past and future lost earnings
• Loss of earning capacity
• Out-of-pocket losses
• Pain and suffering
• Mental distress
• Inconvenience
• Loss of use of a body part (from full or partial paralysis)
• Loss of life enjoyment
• Permanent disfigurement or disability
• Loss of spousal consortium

If you sustained severe injuries in your slip and fall accident, our legal team will aggressively fight for your legal rights during settlement negotiations and in the courtroom. Our goal is to maximize your final monetary award to the greatest extent possible.

Speak With a San Bernardino Slip and Fall Accident Lawyer as Soon as Possible

Greg Bentley &  Keith More, Slip and Fall Lawyers

Slip and fall accidents can lead to injuries that cause accident victims pain for the remainder of their life. Accident victims may also need to undergo ongoing medical treatment well into the future. When victims suffer these catastrophic injuries, they can turn to the court system for appropriate monetary compensation. Sometimes people might think that their case is so simple that they do not need the help of a lawyer. Reach out to a San Bernardino personal injury lawyer.

This is a mistake. Insurance companies will make every effort to deny you the compensation you deserve. The best way to prevent this is with the help of an experienced attorney.

Slip and fall victims only have two years from their accident to file a lawsuit for monetary compensation under California’s statute of limitations. When accident victims file their lawsuit belatedly, absent extreme circumstances, they cannot file a lawsuit seeking monetary recovery. Therefore, retain a knowledgeable lawyer to handle your case as soon as possible after your accident.

At Bentley & More LLP, our experienced legal team welcomes the opportunity to pursue maximum monetary compensation for your permanent and catastrophic slip and fall injuries. Our legal team knows how to negotiate with insurance company adjusters—and how to try cases successfully to a verdict. We can help you choose the most successful legal options in your case and work toward obtaining the highest amount of monetary recovery available.

For a free case evaluation and legal consultation with an experienced San Bernardino slip and fall accident attorney, please call us at (949) 870-3800 or contact us online.

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Bentley & More LLP – ​San Bernardino Office

Phone: (949) 870-3800