Slip and Fall Accident Claims

What You Have to Prove

Direct Answer: You must show a dangerous condition existed, the owner knew or should reasonably have discovered it, and they failed to repair it or warn visitors within a reasonable time — and that this caused your injury.

The owner is not treated as an insurer of every visitor's safety. A spill that happened seconds before you slipped is very different from a leaking freezer that left a puddle for hours, or a broken step reported to management weeks earlier. The case usually turns on notice: actual notice (they were told or saw it) or constructive notice (it had been there long enough that a reasonable inspection would have found it).

Store inspection logs, cleaning schedules, maintenance records, incident reports and CCTV footage are how notice is proved. Asking for them promptly matters, because footage is often overwritten within weeks.

When You Were Partly at Fault

Most states reduce your compensation by your percentage of fault, and many bar recovery if you were 50% or 51% or more responsible. A small number of jurisdictions, including Alabama, Maryland, North Carolina, Virginia and (for most claims) the District of Columbia, use pure contributory negligence, where being even slightly at fault can bar the claim entirely. Wearing unsuitable footwear, looking at a phone or ignoring a posted warning are the arguments defendants typically raise.

Your legal status on the property can also matter. Some states still distinguish invitees, licensees and trespassers and owe each a different duty of care; others, such as California, apply a general reasonable-care standard to lawful visitors instead (Rowland v. Christian, 1968).

Falls on Public Property

If the fall happened on a sidewalk, in a public building or at a school, the owner is a government entity, and most states require a formal written notice of claim within a short window, sometimes as little as 90 days, before you can sue at all. That deadline is separate from, and shorter than, the general statute of limitations.