Who’s at Fault for a Personal Injury If I Slip and Fall When Intoxicated?

A slip and fall accident may result in severe injuries that require significant medical treatment. In most cases, the landlord would be accountable to pay compensation because of the Premises Liability law.

However, things could become challenging for the intoxicated at the time of the accident.

You may still claim compensation, but the landlord may argue that the accident was your fault which affects your case and can even lead to its denial.

So, read through this post to know how to protect your rights if you were drunk during a slip and fall accident.

Premises Liability Law in Slip and Fall Accidents

In general, the Premises Liability law applies in slip and fall accidents. It revolves around the liability of a property owner or management to keep their place safe for guests, customers, and tenants.

Landlords are liable to pay compensation in slip and falls accidents if the victim can prove the following:

• The landlord knew about the hazards in their property
• The landlord fails to keep their property safe for people
• The victim was permitted to come on the property or use its facilities
• The landlord didn’t place warning signs about particular property dangers

For example, a grocery manager is liable if they didn’t place a sign on a wet floor and a customer slips on it. However, they are not accountable if there was a wet floor sign on the area and the customer had disregarded the warning.

However, the case becomes complicated if the victim was drunk during the accident.

What If You Were Under Intoxication During a Slip and Fall Accident

The landlord’s insurance provider will avoid paying injury compensation to protect their business interest. So, they are likely to argue against your case, stating that you were drunk during the accident.

Common arguments that insurance carriers use against a drunk slip and fall accident victim include:

• A person who wasn’t drunk would have avoided the hazard
• You couldn’t notice the warning sign because of intoxication
• You slipped and fell because of poor balance and reflex actions

These arguments can damage your case, especially if you cannot prove the landlord’s negligence.

Fortunately, you may prove that the landlord is partially at-fault with the help of a professional Burbank personal injury attorney. They will fight your case based on the Comparative Fault principle in California.

Your lawyer will prove that the landlord failed to keep their property safe from accidents. The court will then distribute the fault between you and the landlord and divide the compensation accordingly.

For example, your lawyer may argue that there was no wet floor sign making the landlord partially liable even if you were drunk.

The judge may award you 40% fault because you were drunk. Then they would give 60% fault to the landlord because of property negligence, so you receive 60% of the total compensation amount.

On a side note, you won’t receive compensation if the court awards you 51% fault or higher. That’s why it’s crucial to hire a reliable legal representative to optimize your slip and fall accident case.

Hire a Personal Injury Lawyer in Burbank to Prove the Landlord’s Negligence

The key to claiming compensation if you were drunk in a slip and fall accident is to prove the landlord’s negligence. While it will be challenging to claim 100% compensation, you can optimize your case to get the most benefits.

So, hire a reputable Burbank personal injury attorney to support your slip and fall accident case. They will minimize your fault while maximizing your compensation.