If you suffered injuries when you fell in a business, public space, or private property, you might be entitled to compensation. However, the process is often complicated. Though insurance companies might claim to want to help you, they are for-profit businesses and do not have your best interests at heart. Our knowledgeable slip and fall attorneys at O’Connor, Acciani & Levy can evaluate your case and explain your legal options. In many cases, the attorney could engage in negotiations with the property owner’s insurance company and reach an appropriate settlement. Having adept legal representation could make a big difference in a Covington slip and fall settlement. Working with a local lawyer could help ensure you get all the compensation you deserve.
Proving Negligence is Critical in Slip and Fall Negotiations
You must show that the insured’s negligence resulted in your injury before you can begin negotiations and be awarded compensation. Simply put, negligence is a failure to take reasonable steps to protect others. In a slip and fall case, the steps that are reasonable vary, depending on why you were on the other party’s property. A business owner has a more stringent duty to protect customers than a homeowner has toward social guests. Your attorney must show that the party who owns or occupies the property failed to fulfill their duty of care. In response, the insurer might assert that your behavior led to your injuries. Kentucky Statute §411.182 makes each party responsible for the results of their actions. If you were partially at fault for an injury, you cannot collect the portion of the damages that resulted from your actions. If you negotiate without representation, you might be vulnerable to an insurer’s contention that you were at fault for your injury. Your skilled Covington attorney at O’Connor, Acciani & Levy will gather and produce evidence that minimizes your degree of responsibility for an accident, increasing the amount of compensation you are entitled to receive.Covington Attorneys Help Negotiate for Insurance Settlements
Covington property owners usually notify their insurance companies immediately when someone is hurt on their premises. As a result, the insurance company might reach out to you quickly to obtain a written or recorded statement. The insurer might even offer you a sum of money and then rush you into signing a release form. Signing a release form or accepting any amount of money can result in an unfair settlement of your claim. Talking to the insurer before speaking with an attorney could be a costly error and accepting an initial offer might be a critical mistake. When an insurer takes your recorded statement, they could use anything you said against you later. They might take your words out of context. Therefore, if an insurance company asks for a recorded statement, it is best to politely refuse and offer to speak later in the presence of a lawyer. Similarly, an insurer might offer a settlement before you have fully recovered from your injuries or realized the extent of your damages. People injured in slip and fall cases might underestimate the injury’s long-term impact and cannot accurately calculate its effect on your financial and physical health. A seasoned legal professional at O’Connor, Acciani & Levy has years of experience evaluating injury claims and can make a more realistic assessment and demand that any offer from the insurance company provide adequate compensation, or it will be rejected.What Losses Could a Settlement Compensate after a Slip and Fall?
In settlement negotiations, your attorney will present proof of your expenses and losses related to the injury, usually in two categories—economic and non-economic. Economic compensation may include:- Medical treatment
- Physical therapy
- Prescriptions
- Incidentals like parking at the doctor’s office
- Damage to personal property
- Lost income
- Future wages, if unable to return to work
- Pain
- Emotional turmoil
- Inconvenience
- Loss of future enjoyment
