QUESTION
Can I sue for slip and fall that worsened prior injuries?
Asked on Jan 25th, 2017 on Slip and Fall - New York
More details to this question:
I slipped on water in my kitchen at my apartment, hurting neck, back, shoulder, knee, and hip. I had neck,back herniations already. The leak was called in and supposed to have been fixed by maintenance January 23rd. I walked into my kitchen the following morning, and slipped, landing very hard on my right side. The kitchen was dark so I never even saw the water. I told the landlord of the incident, and they sent someone to repair again. Never even asked if I was alright. My lady went downstairs first today the 25th, and there as more leaking they fixed today. The landlord didnt even wanna send maintenance out today, saying we were told to wait 24 hrs to shower. Which was a total fabrication on her part. She wasnt even here. I had to make a video pointing out what was done each visit, show the caulk was fine, and tell her where I felt it was coming from. They had to change the entire faucet. Theyve been patching it up 2yrs now with caulk. Which wasnt even the problem. Can I sue???
1 ANSWER
Civil Rights Law Attorney serving Rockville Centre, NY
Partner at
Lori Nevias, Attorney at Law
1 Award
YES. You can sue for your injuries, because the landlord was aware of the problem, had a duty to repair, and failed to repair. You have the burden of proving everything you stated, including the existence of the leak, the landlord's prior notice of it, his failure to repair it, and that you gave him access to your apartment to do so. While you can sue even though you have pre-existing injuries, the question is whether they have any significant money value. You must prove your slip and fall exacerbated the pre-existing injury, and you're not just experiencing pain or impairment only related to the preexisting injury. Your shoulder, knee and hip injuries sound new, and again, the money value of the injuries depends on their severity, permanence, and your degree of impairment.
You should also be entitled to a RENT ABATEMENT for the conditions you described in your apartment.
Answered on Jan 27th, 2017 at 5:52 PM