Cumming
Slip and Fall Accident Lawyer

Even a minor slip and fall accident can lead to significant injuries. According to the National Floor Safety Institute, roughly eight million people visit the emergency room every year due to a slip and fall accident. If you sustained injuries due to a slip and fall, you can recover financial compensation for your damages. 

John Foy & Associates is here to help. We are one of the largest and most experienced personal injury law firms serving Cumming. We have worked on slip and fall cases for more than 20 years, and we’ve built a reputation as the “Strong Arm” law firm that can force insurance companies to pay up and give you the money you deserve.

What Counts As a Slip and Fall Case?

If you fell and got injured, your first instinct may be to blame yourself. You might feel clumsy or imagine that you weren’t paying attention. But the truth is that most slip and fall accidents happen through no fault of the victim. Instead, most slip and fall accidents happen due to some obstacle or hazard. If the hazard wasn’t there, you would never have fallen in the first place. 

Here’s an example. Let’s say you’re walking into a store along a paved walkway that the store owns and maintains. But the pavement of the walkway is broken and uneven. You trip over the uneven concrete, injuring yourself. This accident is not your fault. It was directly caused by the store failing to maintain a safe walkway.  

Other examples of slip and fall conditions include:

• Slipping on a wet floor that wasn’t marked
• Tripping on an unmarked step up or down
• Stumbling in a poorly lit passage or falling down unlit stairs
• Slipping on spilled product in a grocery store

These slip and fall accidents are an example of what the law calls premises liability cases. Simply put, premises liability means that the owner and management of a place have an obligation to keep it safe. If they don’t, they have been negligent in their duty. 

This is why you have grounds for a full financial recovery—one that can often be worth tens of thousands or even hundreds of thousands of dollars.

What Will a Slip and Fall Lawyer Do for Me? 

Even though you can fight for compensation on your own, we recommend that you get professional legal assistance. Unless you have extensive experience in personal injury law, there’s little to no chance that you can win compensation for your claim. However, insurance companies often have lots of resources and solid legal knowledge to challenge you effectively. 

Our lawyers can even the playing field and increase your odds of recovering a settlement by: 

• Helping you gather critical information, reports, and evidence that supports your claim 
• Consulting with experts and witnesses to get supporting testimony 
• Handling your communications with other parties to ensure privacy, confidentiality, and integrity get maintained 
• Representing you and your best interests in court and during negotiation 
• Calculating all your damages accurately so that nothing gets left out 

You should focus on resting, healing, and recovering from your slip and fall injuries. Let our slip and fall attorneys in Cumming handle all the legal work. 

What Should I Do After a Slip and Fall Accident?

We often tell clients that the best thing they can do is “be their own best advocate” in any personal injury case. This means taking basic steps to ensure that your case gets appropriately documented so that there will be no confusion later. The sooner you document what happened and make sure the insurance company doesn’t get misinformation, the better.

A few ways you can document your case include:

• Speak to the manager or property owner right away. They should know that an accident occurred on their property. If it’s a store, ask for the name and contact information of the manager you speak to. Always talk to a manager as rank and file employees may not know how to react to an injury.  
• Take pictures of the place where you fell. The more documentation, the better. Show where you were walking, where you fell, and, if possible, what caused you to fall. It can help to take shots of the overall area to show that there was no warning or that the signage was not visible.
• Talk to witnesses. If anyone saw you fall, ask them what they saw happen. Write down names and numbers so that you can contact them later.
• Seek medical attention. Many serious injuries can seem minor at first. Go see a doctor, preferably one who is familiar with slip and fall accidents, and get a medical opinion. Your lawyer can help you get to a doctor who understands the most common slip and fall injuries.

Additionally, be careful in what you say, both at the scene and to the insurance company. You may want to put a positive face on the accident or downplay your pain. Don’t ever do this. The insurance company will use this against you later, claiming that the accident was not serious. If asked whether you’re okay, say that you’re not sure yet, and you will need to see a doctor.

And always speak to a slip and fall lawyer in Cumming before providing a statement to the insurance company.

Don’t Trust Insurance Companies

Insurance companies love to pretend to be on your side. While they may seem friendly and caring at first, you need to understand that their behavior is all a front. What they’re trying to get you to do is to admit fault for your slip and fall accident and accept a fast settlement. 

While fast compensation may seem beneficial, the amount they’re offering you is very low. The last thing an insurance company wants to do is pay you the full amount of compensation you need for your damages. So, don’t let them get away with having you settle for less. Always pursue the maximum amount and never trust the insurance companies to do that initially. 

What If My Accident Happened at a Friend or Neighbor’s Home?

You are still eligible for a full financial recovery even if the accident happened in a private home. However, we often speak to clients who are afraid to file a claim for this kind of injury because they don’t want to bother someone they love.  

But your friend or loved one will not get involved in your case. Your claim is a private matter between you and their insurance company. You do not have to “sue” your friend or take any action against them, and they will not pay anything out of pocket if you win.

How Long do I Have to File My Slip and Fall Claim in Georgia?

Not long. Every slip and fall accident has a tight deadline set by law. In Cumming, the local courts follow deadlines governed by the Georgia state statutes and federal statutes of limitations. 

At the absolute most, you will have up to two years to file your claim according to the Official Code of Georgia Annotated (OCGA) § 9-3-33, but in many cases, it will be less. In some circumstances, you may have only weeks. Therefore, you should speak to one of our Cumming slip and fall lawyers immediately.  

Is It Expensive to Hire a Slip and Fall Lawyer in Cumming? 

Our slip and fall lawyers in Cumming only take a portion of your settlement as payment for our services. However, keep in mind that your initial consultation will always be completely free at no risk or obligation to you. 

Additionally, we never charge for any of our services upfront. We only accept payment if we win your case and get you compensated for your damages. If we can’t do that, you pay us absolutely nothing. 

Speak to a Cumming Slip and Fall Lawyer for Free

You shouldn’t have to spend years paying for an injury that isn’t your fault. John Foy & Associates has slip and fall lawyers in Cumming ready to assist you. So, don’t delay in getting your free consultation today. To schedule an appointment, please give us a call or fill out our online contact form. We are available 24/7 to provide you with support.