Philadelphia Slip and Fall Lawyer

In the event of a fall down accident, it is important to have experienced and dedicated slip and fall attorney on your side. Stuart Carpey has helped countless others gain compensation for their damages in personal injury cases.

• He can help you prove that the injury was the result of someone else’s negligence.
• He can guard you from attempts by the other party or the insurance company to try to convince you to settle for less than you deserve.
• He can help you obtain full financial compensation for all of your medical expenses.
• He will stick with your case the entire way to make sure that each detail is handled with care and expertise.

The Five Most Common Slip and Fall Accident Injuries

What are common Wrist and Arm Injuries in a Slip and Fall Accident?

There are many common injuries particularly affecting your wrists. There are eight carpal bones and a number of metacarpal bones, as well as several tendons, all small and intricately connected.  Most common are repetitive stress injuries, like from sewing, racquet sports, and typing. We often see clients who have sustained injuries to the wrist following a slip and fall accident. These are very common injuries, yet need early medical attention to avoid chronic and debilitating problems long term.

• Tendonitis of the wrist can be caused by arm injuries which stress the wrist; overuse; or introducing new, high-impact exercises
  • Allowing the wrist to rest can ease tendonitis
• Carpal tunnel syndrome can be caused by irritation in the nerves of the wrist— such repetitive actions as grasping with your hands, bending of the wrist (like on a desk/keyboard), and intense exercise (in sports such as tennis)
• Wrist sprains are often caused by a fall on outstretched hands (i.e., from trying to break your own fall)
• Colles fractures are fractures of the forearm bones near the wrist that also occur from forward falls
• The wrist is also susceptible to stretching and tearing in the ligaments and swelling in the tendons

Chronic pain can result from improper treatment or not allowing the wrist or bones adequate time to heal completely, particularly following a fall down accident Anti-inflammatory medications can help, but will not resolve the problem.  Injuries stemming from overuse can result in permanent nerve damage if they are neglected or misdiagnosed.  It’s advisable to seek treatment if you experience wrist pain, especially if it was caused by a fall.

The arm is one of the most commonly injured body parts in a negligence case. An arm injury can come as a consequence of an array of accidents, including a fall from a bicycle, a slip and fall, a sports-related accident, a car crash or motorcycle crash, truck accident, or even a pedestrian being struck by a motor vehicle in a crosswalk.

Minor arm injuries can be caused simply by overuse. Acute arm injuries, on the other hand, often occur suddenly and are caused by falls or direct blows (such as can occur during an automobile accident). Examples of acute arm injuries are contusions, muscle ruptures and fractures. Most acute arm injuries are accompanied by severe pain, bruising and swelling. These injuries often require immediate medical attention, or else the victim risks suffering serious complications and long-term damage.

Doctors will often order x-rays to be taken of an arm injury. If the bone has been fractured, the doctor will set the break using a brace, splint, or cast, depending on the type, location, and severity of the break. If a fracture is severe, surgery may be necessary, after which will be regular sessions of physical therapy. Often times, doctors will prescribe narcotic pain medication and/or nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory medications like ibuprofen, ketoprofen, and naproxen to ease the pain. Recovery from an arm injury can take up to 8 weeks, depending on the seriousness of the injury.

The main causes and average severity of an arm injury varies according to the age of the victim. Adults are susceptible to serious breaks due to osteoporosis and gradual loss of muscle mass, and the elderly have the highest risk of breaks due to their fragile anatomy as well as issues of vision loss and poor balance.

If you have suffered an injury to your arm which has resulted in bruising, swelling, bleeding, or pain during movement, you should see a medical professional at once. Whether it’s an acute arm injury due to a sudden fall or accident or a chronic injury from being a “weekend warrior” on the tennis court -both can be resolved with proper medical care and a good physical therapy plan.

Summer Camp Slip and Fall Accidents in Pennsylvania.

An injury sustained by a child or teenager can cause no shortage of grief for a parent. There are countless ways in which a minor might hurt him or herself, some of which the Carpey Law site has written about:

• Swimming Pool Accidents

• Amusement Park Accidents

• Youth Sports Concussions

• Bicycle Accidents

• Trampoline Accidents

Some of these accidents take place in common settings — playgrounds, football fields, backyards; but statistics show that there is another major milieu which sees a large number of youth accidents: Summer camp.

Summer Camp Injuries

A 2005 study conducted Pediatrics, titled “Illness and Injury Among Children Attending Summer Camp in the United States,” reports that child injuries and sicknesses at summer camp occur at a higher rates than in other activities, like football, basketball, and soccer. This is largely due to children staying at camp all day and all night, increasing the risk for illness and physical harm.

For the edification of parents sending their kid(s) to summer camp, here are some of highlights of Pediatrics summer camp injuries study:

• Head injuries (including injuries involving the skull, eyes, ears, and teeth) occurred most often.

• Fractures most often occurred to hands, backs, arms, and legs.

• Injuries most often occurred as a result of falling or tripping.

Ways to help ensure that your child will remain safe from summer camp injuries is to provide him or her with the appropriate clothing and safety materials. Closed-toed shoes that can get a good grip on different surfaces may reduce the risk of injuries related to tripping and slipping.

Also, make sure the camp properly trains their staff and makes first-aid kits readily available in the event of accidents involving knives and other dangerous implements. The American Camp Association says knife injuries account for fifteen percent of injuries to staff and campers in resident summer camps.

For more information on common minor injuries and how to prevent them, see our article, “Information About Common Accidents Affecting Young People.”

Why Scaffolding Accidents are not just Dangerous for Workers in Philadelphia

Scaffolding is used in Pennsylvania all the time, and for many reasons. These structures are used for painting and repairing houses, building additions, or doing any number of other construction jobs in the city and surrounding areas. In all cases, scaffolding is only temporary; once the job is done, the scaffolding is removed.

Unfortunately, some workers erect and disassemble scaffolding so often that they occasionally miss crucial steps or take the danger of the structure for granted. This is how scaffolding accidents have become one of the most prominent construction accidents in PA.

Scaffolding Accidents in Pennsylvania

A preliminary Bureau of Labor Studies report for 2011 says that fatal injury rates for construction workers were 12.8 percent. On average, scaffolding injuries affect just under 5,000 workers every year. And roughly 50 workers die from a scaffolding related accidents annually.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) reports that about 28 percent of scaffolding related accidents which occur during every seven-year period are caused by structural deficiencies. Which is to say, they could be avoided with a bit more oversight.

Common Causes of Scaffolding Accidents

During the assembling stage, disassembling stage, and the stage in which workers are performing other tasks, there are many accidents which can occur if a construction worker is not being entirely safe in his or her actions.

• Assembling / Disassembling. 8 percent of scaffolding accidents happened while building or breaking down the structure.

• Scaffolding Failure. 10 percent of scaffolding accidents happened because the scaffolding was not assembled correctly and the structure collapsed at some point during the job.

• Electrocution. 18 percent of scaffolding accidents involved electrocutions. Many scaffolding structures are made of metal poles which make them particularly dangerous in the event of an electrical accident. Working around power lines is especially dangerous.

• Falling Objects. 10 percent of scaffolding accidents involve objects falling from the scaffolding and hitting a worker or passerby below.

• Falls While Working. 10 percent of scaffolding accident involve a worker literally falling from the scaffolding.

Scaffolding accidents which involve objects or workers falling from the structure could be avoided if the scaffolding is erected according to OSHA standards. There should be no loose planks or poles, and no objects should be left on the scaffolding if they can feasibly slip through a space in the structure.

For information on how to safely erect scaffolding, see OSHA’s Construction Training Program Lesson Plan on scaffolding

Factors in Calculating Possible Settlement in a Slip and Fall Case

In the old days, there probably was a “formula” for determining the value of the typical personal injury case. Today, there is no such formula. Instead, insurance companies and experienced personal injury attorneys evaluate their cases based upon the “marketplace.” The marketplace for a personal injury claim is what amount of money a jury in the jurisdiction where the case will be filed is typically giving for these sorts of claims and/or less the amount of money needed to pay to go to trial, including the costs to pay any expert witnesses or treating doctors to appear at trial to testify on your behalf.

There are many factors that go into settlement calculations. When we give you a figure at the point in time in your case when we believe the case may be ready to settle, we have given you an estimate. If the case is tried, the verdict could be higher, or could be lower, than our estimate. Sometimes cases can settle relatively early. Sometimes they can settle in the middle of trial. Nevertheless, here are factors that can affect settlement values:

• The severity of the injury. Injuries that involve fractured bones, torn ligaments, herniated discs in the neck or back requiring surgery, traumatic brain injury, permanent scarring, or catastrophic injuries will generally result in higher settlements than cases involving sprains, strains, and bruises.

• Whether medical treatment is completed. It is far easier to estimate settlement values when your treatment has ended and you have finished all of your medical care. You generally do not want to settle a claim if future care is anticipated. However, if your case has to go to trial, we can ask your doctor to testify about future medical care. This can go into the jury’s calculation when they are considering a verdict.

• Property damage to all of the cars/vehicles in the accident. In accidents where there is little or no damage to your car and the other cars, settlements will generally be lower than cases where there is major damage. High amounts of property damage, as well as visible damage recorded on video or photographs are valuable to both insurance companies and juries.

• The degree to which you may have been at fault in the accident. If you contributed to the accident in any way, your ability to be fully compensated is reduced under Pennsylvania law.

• Your medical history. If you had any prior medical care or surgery to the area of your body that you injured in the accident which is the subject of the lawsuit, this will negatively impact settlement values.

• The type of healthcare provider you choose to see. Cases involving orthopedists, neurologists, neurosurgeons and other specialists will generally have higher settlement values.

• The amount of insurance available for the accident. Unfortunately, the amount of insurance the property owner (in a fall down case) or the other driver ( in a motor vehicle accident case) has will determine your financial recovery. Many people who are insured carry low levels of automobile coverage. You can protect yourself, however. In a car accident case or motorcycle case, if the other person’s insurance is low, you can turn to our own Underinsured Motorist Coverage for additional protection, if you purchased it on your own insurance policy.
• The jurisdiction where the case will be tried. The demographics of jury pools differ from county to county. So too, if the case is to be tried in the Federal Courts, the jurors can be different from those in state courts. Simply put, some juries are more generous than others when it comes to compensating personal injury victims, and where the case will be tried is therefore very important. This fact alone must be taken into consideration when evaluating a case for settlement purposes.

Slip and Fall Testimonials for Carpey Law

Slip and Fall Victim Reviews Carpey Law

On January 5, 2014, Shanta Perkins was involved in a ‘slip and fall’ accident. Shanta broke her left humerus and went to Carpey Law for representation.

I recommend him to anyone, he really fights for you! – Shanta Perkins

If you are involved in a Slip and Fall accident and would like to speak to attorney Stuart Carpey about representation, please give him a call at 1.610-834-6030

How Can Stuart Carpey Help With Your Slip and Fall Accident Case?

Stuart Carpey has helped countless clients get compensation for their injuries as a result of a slip and fall accident. Additionally:

• He has your best interest in mind when representing you.
• He can help you prove that the injury was the result of someone else’s negligence.
• He can guard you from attempts by the other party or the insurance company to try to convince you to settle for less than you deserve.
• He can help you obtain full financial compensation for your injuries and medical expenses.

Read more about Slip and Fall Injuries here.

A Success Story After A Slip And Fall Accident

Florinda Badeau was in a slip and fall accident on an icy sidewalk  in Philadelphia in 2014 as a result of which she broke her arm and needed surgery.  She was walking her children to the bus stop on the morning of the accident.  After litigating the case, Stuart Carpey was able to obtain a very successful settlement on Florinda’s behalf.

Even though it was a long process, it was worth it. We won! – Florinda Badeau

If you are involved in a Slip and Fall accident and would like to speak to Stuart Carpey about representation, please give him a call at 610-834-6030