Bronx, New York – Slip and Fall Accident: First Steps to Take After a Fall

A slip and fall or trip and fall accident can lead to a lot of confusion for a victim. What should you do first? Who should you trust? Should you go to the hospital? Should you call the police? These are just a few of the many questions that will race through your mind if this happens to you.

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The first thing that you should do is to call 9-1-1 and ask for a police officer and an EMT. There are more than twice as many NYPD officers as EMTs, the police may respond more quickly, they are trained in first aid and can do a basic assessment of your injuries. If an EMT or paramedic is needed, the police may be able to get a unit to the scene faster than you or a companion. Plus, a police officer will make a report about your accident, which will be helpful if you decide to take legal action.

If you really don’t feel like you need the ambulance, you should still get checked out as soon as possible at an emergency room or urgent care facility. As we discuss with clients at Feiner & Lavy, there are many injuries that you don’t feel at first, but hours or within a few days, you realize you are really hurt. A doctor may be able to spot the injury early and start treatment that can lead to a faster and more complete recovery.

When you are at the scene, be sure that either you or a companion take photos of the place where you were injured and pay especially close attention to any hazards that caused your injury, like a grape crushed on a supermarket floor or wet tile in the lobby of a building. Use the camera on your smartphone and take video or lots of pictures. And be sure to note any cameras in the area and photograph them. When an investigation begins on your case, it will be very important that a Bronx personal injury law firm, like Feiner & Lavy, can identify the cameras and retrieve the video of your fall.

Finally, you should call the personal injury attorneys at Feiner & Lavy. Slip and fall accidents are a specialty for our firm, and we are committed to fighting to make sure you receive the best possible injury settlement. This money will help you cover your loss of wages, any emergency medical care you may require, the long-term medical care your injuries may need to heal, and compensation for pain and suffering and the loss of enjoyment in your life. People don’t always understand these last two ideas, but they are important because they represent a deterioration in the life you enjoyed up until the moment of that accident. This is compensation for something that has been stolen from you.

Another thing that is important is for you not to share what happened to you too openly. DO NOT TALK ABOUT IT ON SOCIAL MEDIA! DON’T TELL THOSE BIG MOUTH FRIENDS WHO WILL TALK ABOUT IT ON SOCIAL MEDIA! Here’s the deal: you may cause some reputational damage to the location where this happened, but there’s a better chance that you hurt your case and create sympathy for the other guy. Any misstatements you make CAN AND WILL be held against you. This is a really, really bad idea. The best idea is to keep your mouth shut as much as possible. You can tell people you had a fall and were hurt, but you don’t have to tell them where it happened or that you’re involved in pursuing a legal claim. The more you say publicly, the more you may undermine your own case.

If you or a loved one has been injured and need a Bronx law firm to fight for your injury, contact Feiner & Lavy today. Our attorneys have more than 80 years of experience, and we have a broad range of resources available to help you win the settlement you deserve. We are a local Bronx personal injury law firm that knows our courts, our borough and our clients. We pride ourselves on our level of determination and will not stop until our clients’ cases are settled with the highest possible payout. If you believe you have been injured through the negligence of another, call us today at 212-393-9130 for a free consultation.