Sidewalk Accidents

Sidewalk accidents happen for a variety of reasons. During the winter months, many people suffer injuries in slip and fall accidents due to improper maintenance of sidewalks, including a failure to remove snow and ice, improper or inadequate shoveling, or a property owner or tenant’s failure to apply salt, sand, or other chemicals to prevent an accumulation of ice. The winter also causes defects such as raised sidewalks, cracks, missing sections, or other defects that can lead to serious knee, back, arm, ankle, or head injuries (if the person is unable to break his or her fall).

If you have suffered a serious injury in a sidewalk accident, contact The Law Offices of Mark A. Siesel for a free consultation. We can discuss whether you have a claim, go over any questions you have, and talk about what kinds of strategies could help you secure fair compensation.

Common Sidewalk Accident Injuries

Sidewalk accidents, including collisions with obstructions and slip and fall accidents, can lead to many types of injuries, some of them serious:

• Sprains. Sprained ankles, knees, and wrists are common because your body can twist as you fall. Sprains can lead to reduced mobility and significant pain.
• Fractures. When you fall, you may instinctively put out your arm to try to catch yourself, which can lead to fractured wrists and arms. Depending on how you fall, you may also break your arms, legs, or other bones. For seniors, broken hips are a real concern, because this injury can severely limit mobility and independence. In addition, studies have shown that having a hip fracture increases the risk of death, with one in three older adults dying within a year of suffering a hip fracture.
• Facial injuries. Sidewalk injuries can also lead to facial injuries, including scarring, abrasions, chipped or broken teeth, a broken nose, and eye injuries. If you’re wearing glasses when you fall, your glasses could break. Glass from your glasses or other debris could cut your skin or even get into your eyes.
• Spinal injuries. The impact of landing on a sidewalk, especially if you are unable to break your fall, can cause herniated disks or more serious spinal injuries that can lead to partial or even full paralysis.
• Head trauma. Falling on a sidewalk can cause a traumatic brain injury (TBI), where the brain moves inside the skull because of the impact, leading to bruising and bleeding. Falling on a sidewalk can also cause a skull fracture, which can cause severe bleeding and brain trauma. Any time you hit your head on a hard surface like a sidewalk, get immediate medical attention, even if you don’t have symptoms right away.

Any of these injuries can cause not only pain, but also significant costs. The medical expenses for treating injuries from falls can range from hundreds to thousands of dollars. If the injury results in long-term disability, you may need ongoing treatment and rehabilitation. A serious, permanent injury may cost you over a million dollars in medical costs, lost income, and care at an assisted living facility.

Beyond the physical pain and financial strain, sidewalk injuries can lead to long-term emotional consequences such as anxiety, depression, or a fear of falling. This can diminish the quality of life, especially for older adults who might become less active due to the fear of future injuries.

If an individual is unable to work due to injury, they may experience lost wages and loss of future earnings if they can’t return to their job for some time. This can be burdensome for low-income workers who may not have access to sufficient health insurance or paid leave. For high-income earners, not being able to return to work can result in a significant loss of future career opportunities, such as promotions.

The financial and personal impact of a sidewalk accident can affect every area of your life, from your mental health to your finances, and your relationships. This is why you will want to contact an experienced sidewalk accident attorney who can explain whether you have a premises liability claim, a claim against a municipality, or another option for pursuing compensation so you can secure the resources you need for your injuries.

Do I Have a Case?

Under the laws of the State of New York, in order to be successful in a case against a property owner for injuries suffered in a slip and fall or trip and fall accident, the injured person must be able to establish either that the owner knew of the dangerous conditions prior to the accident (obviously much more difficult in an accident due to a more transient defect such as ice than an uneven sidewalk which develops over a more substantial period of time), and failed to correct the defect or remove the ice, directly causing the accident. The property owner can also be held responsible for the accident if he or she “created the condition.” An example of this would be an owner who hires a contractor to perform work on the sidewalk, and this work is performed inadequately or with defective materials which make the sidewalk unsafe for pedestrians. In this scenario, both the property owner and the contractor can bear responsibility for the accident.

In cases involving sidewalks or other property owned by municipalities, there are several additional requirements which make these cases more complex, requiring the services of knowledgeable attorneys who are fully familiar with these complexities and rules of law. For example, in a case of a slip and fall on a sidewalk against a city, town or village, a notice of claim on behalf of the injured person must be filed against the municipality within 90 days of the accident, or the injured person cannot sue. Further, municipalities have to be provided written notification of a condition prior to an accident (which is a virtual impossibility in a slip and fall due to ice), otherwise, the claimant cannot successfully pursue a case against the town, village or city.

Contact Us at The Law Offices of Mark A. Siesel For a Free Consultation

At The Law Offices of Mark A. Siesel, we have represented clients throughout Westchester County, the lower Hudson Valley, and across the State Of New York over the last thirty-nine years who have suffered serious injuries in sidewalk accidents. Because of the complexities involved in successfully representing clients who have been injured in accidents due to negligent maintenance of property, particularly the necessity to establish legal “notice” of a defective or dangerous condition, it is vital that you retain experienced, knowledgeable, and effective litigators to handle your case. Upon our retention by the client, we conduct an immediate investigation of the location of the accident and secure all available witness statements. We obtain photographs of the defect (if it still exists) to ensure that this evidence is preserved for a jury if the case proceeds to trial. Additionally, and critically, we determine if there were prior accidents of a similar nature which can establish the vital prerequisite of legal notice of a defect against the owner of the premises, such as Freedom of Information requests to the local building department for violations.

In some cases, it is necessary to retain the services of professional engineers, architects or other professionals to inspect the sidewalk to make an assessment as to whether there are violations of the local building codes and other municipal statutes.

We have successfully represented clients throughout the State of New York who suffered injuries in sidewalk accidents due to the negligence of private owners, contractors, subcontractors, and municipalities. We quickly and aggressively determine all possible parties that are responsible for our clients’ damages, including pain and suffering, past and future medical and hospital bills, past and future lost earnings, loss of earnings potential, and loss of the ability to perform activities of daily living.

Best of all, our founder, Mark A. Siesel, works personally on every case and treats you with respect and care. In fact, he has remained in touch with former clients and has created genuine friendships with them. Our clients know we genuinely care, and they appreciate the kindness of our team.

Contact the knowledgeable and experienced lawyers at The Law Offices of Mark A. Siesel for a free consultation to discuss your potential case. Contact us anytime at (914) 428-7386 or online.