California woman awarded over $400,000 in slip and fall case against Costco

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A Covina, California resident has been awarded $415,000 by a jury for injuries following a slip and fall accident at an Industry Costco store.  According to sources, the woman, 58, was eating lunch in the food court on April 1, 2009, when she slipped in a puddle of liquid soap and shattered her kneecap.

The jury unanimously voted in favor of the victim, awarding her almost $90,000 for medical expenses, and $325,000 for pain and suffering.   The shattering of her patella has caused the victim to undergo an operation where she had to have her kneecap wired back together, and at least two more operations are probable.  It is likely she will have pain the rest of her life and suffer with partial loss of function and mobility.

Although Costco representatives were not available for comment, the company denies responsibility, suggesting the liquid soap had leaked from a shopping cart.

Man sues hospital for slip and fall incident during treatment

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A former resident of Somerset County in Pennsylvania has filed a lawsuit against Somerset Hospital  for a slip-and-fall incident that occurred on Feb. 25, 2010.  The claimant has stated that he slipped and fell in a pool of water that had been spilled by a hospital employee.  He recalls blood running down his face, seeing blood on the floor “over a large area,” and the floor covered for about 12 to 15 square feet from the water spill.  He also notes he was unconscious for some amount of time.

The registered professional engineer and surveyor lives in California, and was being treated at the Somerset Hospital in February of 2010 for foot pain.  After the injuries from the fall, he was treated and released after two days.

When he returned home to California, he continued to experience severe pain and lost much range of motion, causing him to ultimately be unable to continue working.  He also claims that the incident caused him to drop his wife in August of 2010, which led to her death in March 2011.

Too many young children being injured in slip and fall accidents involving stairs

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Although the number of children aged 4 or younger that are treated in the emergency room for slip and fall accidents on stairs has declined in recent years, doctors insist the numbers are still too high.  The journal, Pediatrics, recently published research collected from 1999 to 2008 showing a decline in emergency room visits regarding stair-related injuries for children under 5.  The numbers average out to a child being rushed to the emergency room every six minutes for slip and fall injuries related to stairs.

During the 10 years the study took place, it was shown that 3% of the children had been hospitalized from hemorrhages in the brain or concussions.  Most of the injuries were to the head or neck areas of the body, although other scrapes, bruises and cuts were seen.  Fractures to the thigh or arm were also serious injuries that resulted from the accidents.  More than half of the children seen in the emergency room were male, and patients aged one were the largest group represented.

Approximately one-fourth of children younger than one were being carried on the stairs at the time of the accident, by a parent or other caregiver.

Litigation and lost revenue, a slippery slope for slip and fall accidents

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A recent study done by Harris Interactive shows that nearly one in three adults would not dine in a restaurant where they knew someone had recently experienced a slip-and-fall accident.  The study was done from a sample of over 1,000 people across the nation.  Although the age and sex of the interviewee did not make much difference in how they answered the question, there were significant differences found from different parts of the United States.  The results showed as much as a 12 percentage point difference between the Northeast area of the United States versus the South as to whether or not the patrons would eat at a restaurant having a recent slip and fall incident.

Not only do owners of restaurants and other places that expect visitors have to be concerned with litigation as a result of a poorly kept area causing accidents, but there is also the likelihood of lost revenue from customers who choose not to dine at or visit establishments where accidents have recently occurred.