Downtown Spokane has some great spaces to shop and eat like River Park Square, the Onion Taphouse, and Grill. Then a walk along some of the downtown sidewalks can help you walk off those hand-cut fries. Though we may not think of it, the sidewalks in the downtown area play a big part of the experience, and most of the time we think nothing of the risks we are taking by walking on those sidewalks.
At Crary & Domanico, P.S., we’ve seen the injuries that can happen on a sidewalk, and we know how disrupting an injury can be. Doctor’s visits, rehab, missed time from work, and all those co-pays and co-insurance bills come due, and with all the missed time from work, it can become difficult to feel like your life is ever going to be back to normal.
If this has happened to you, come talk to one of our attorneys at Crary & Domanico, P.S. so we can start working for you and you can focus on getting back on your feet.
Types of Sidewalk Accidents
Like anything else, a sidewalk can get into disrepair, or it can have risks that come from poor design or bad construction in the first place. Unfortunately, there are a number of ways one can get injured on a sidewalk. In most cases, the injuries come from a fall. The fall can be caused by a slippery surface or objects that the victim trips over.
Some of the causes of sidewalk accidents that we’ve seen over the years are:
- Uneven Sidewalk Surface
- Cracks in Sidewalk
- Turned up Chunks
- Debris on Sidewalk
- Objects Placed on Sidewalk
- Ice Snow or Slush
- Poor Design
- Skateboarders/Bikes/Scooters
Any of these can conditions can cause an accident that can seriously injure the victim. When this happens, the victim is entitled to compensation if they can prove that the owner of the sidewalk is negligent in the cause of the accident.
Making a Sidewalk Injury Claim
Under Washington law, the owner of any property has a duty to keep the area that is open to the public reasonably free from dangerous hazards. If the owner fails and someone gets injured, then a claim can be made. The law allows for two primary ways to prove negligence.
The victim needs to show that the hazard was:
- Created by the owner, or
- The owner knew of the hazard and didn’t fix it in a reasonably timely manner.
In most cases, the owner is likely going to say that they didn’t create the problem, or that they were fixing the problem in a reasonable amount of time. The majority of claims for sidewalk injures are routinely denied by the insurance company who will wait until they know you can put together a proper claim before they take you seriously.
At Crary & Domanico, P.S., we know how to successfully make a sidewalk claim, and we know how to counter the owner’s defenses and to deal with the insurance companies.
Sidewalk Accident Injuries
Most sidewalks are made of concrete or some similar material, and when someone trips or slips and falls, the injuries can be devastating to the victim. At Crary & Domanico, P.S., we have made it our mission to help those who are injured by just doing something they do every day like walking on a sidewalk.
Over the years, we’ve helped many Spokane accident victims get compensation for their injuries, and some of the common injuries we’ve seen that have come from a sidewalk accident are:
- Traumatic Brain Injury
- Broken Facial Bones
- Shattered Wrists
- Shattered Elbows
- Broken Collarbone
- Busted Ankle
- Broken Teeth
- Eye Injury
- Severe Cuts
- Spinal Cord Injury
- Electrocution
Contact a Spokane Premises Liability Lawyer.
Established in Spokane in 1948, Crary & Domanico, P.S. is committed to providing our clients with the absolute highest quality legal representation. If our Premises Liability Lawyers represent you for your accident case, you have our assurance that we will use our absolute best efforts to win your case. Contact us after any accident resulting in a serious injury for a free, confidential consultation and case evaluation. We will only offer you advice which is in your best interest.
