Legal

Can I Sue if I Suffered an Injury During a Slip and Fall at a Public Park?

Can I Sue if I Suffered an Injury During a Slip and Fall at a Public Park?

A fall can occur almost anywhere, if you trip over something and lose your footing or balance. This is why slip and fall injuries are among the most prevalent than any other kind of accident, aside from car crashes on roadways.

A personal injury sustained during a slip and fall usually doesn’t result in death, but it may still result in costly and time-consuming medical care and recuperation. Medical costs and lost income can be devastating to someone and it can give you sleepless nights if the accident wasn’t your fault or there is someone else you believe was to blame.

How Do Slip and Fall Accidents Happen While at a Public Park?

Any place has the potential to be dangerous, even a public park. These are places intended for people to have fun, get outdoors and relax, but accidents will happen anywhere. From modest, groomed municipal parks to national parks with extensive trails and campsites, both the terrain and facilities you will come across within public parks can vary greatly.

Due to cuts in government spending, parks are not always afforded the funds to maintain their grounds as regularly as they should, or even at all. As a result, accidents occur more often today than they did 10 years ago.

Can You Sue for a Slip-and-Fall in a Public Park?

In situations where you are hurt during a slip and fall on land privately owned, the property owner is usually held liable for not fixing or removing a hazard. They can be sued and have to pay damages for your injuries.

When the land is controlled by a local, state or federal authority, such as public property like a park, sidewalk or roadway, this is treated differently. An important thing to remember is when making a claim against a government agency for negligence, it may be subject to restrictions, such as hard deadlines, some being as short as just 30 days after the incident. Additionally, they may also set a limit on how much they are required to pay, which sometimes may not exceed $100,000. While it may seem like a big number, when you take into account the severity of one’s injuries, especially if they are in need of permanent care or endure a disability, it may not be enough.

Determining Fault in a Slip and Fall Case is Important

In many respects, getting compensation after a slip and fall injuries is more difficult than it would be in a vehicle crash. Why? Because the injured party carries the burden of demonstrating who was to blame.

Not only must you prove that the owner — in this situation a local or federal authority who manages the park — was responsible for something dangerous that caused you to be hurt, but it must be proven that they knew it was there and didn’t act or did not offer warning about it.

A scenario of this might be if a park bridge was decaying, and you fractured your leg or foot when you fell through a broken board.

You must prove that the park management knew about the faulty bridge, didn’t fix it and did not stop visitors from using it, or at the very least offer adequate notice of the danger.

If this was the case, you may have grounds for a compensation claim.

What Can a Personal Injury Attorney Help in a Situation Like this?

It’s tough to pursue reimbursement from a park owner on your own. It makes sense to employ a personal injury attorney or find slip and fall lawyers to assist you in preparing and submitting a claim to seek compensation. This will give you peace of mind, given the possible stress of coping with a significant injury.

The faster you act, the better it will be for the situation, especially since there may be only so much time to act before your claim will no longer be valid. The incident and the injury sustained, as well as the likelihood of a successful lawsuit against a park, will be assessed by an expert attorney.

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