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Slip-and-fall accident risks increase with age

On Behalf of | May 14, 2020 | Personal Injury |

A slip-and-fall accident can happen to anybody and can result in some potentially serious injuries or even death, depending on the circumstances of the accident and the person’s preexisting health. As many in Massachusetts probably know, as people age their chances of being gravely injured by a fall increase significantly the older they get.

According to a study, falls are the leading source of injury and injury-related death among Americans age 65 and older. On average, someone in this age group falls every second of each day. Furthermore, one out of four of these older Americans are expected to fall sometime this year. Approximately 30,000 deaths are said to be the result of falls annually, and another 3 million older Americans are treated for injuries caused by falls. One in five of these falls results in serious injuries, like cracked skulls, brain damage, fractured hip bones and broken arms.

Even among Americans younger than 65, slip-and-falls are still commonplace and costly. Falls are the second-leading cause of preventable workplace injury in the United States, resulting in missed workdays and hospital bills. In 2018, the latest data available, 147,390 employees were injured and 154 workers were killed in workplace falls.

When the fall isn’t your fault

Oftentimes, falls are not the fault of the person injured, especially if it happened on someone else’s property. There could be environmental factors, such as a slippery floor, wobbly step, torn carpet or another tripping hazard not properly marked. The person could have been knocked over or scared out of the way by a dog or a cyclist, for example, and slipped as they tried to avoid the incoming danger.

There’s a wide variety of circumstances that can lead to a fall. In order to make an effective personal injury claim, you have to present the facts of those unfortunate circumstances in the favor of the victim. If you or a loved one have suffered from a slip-and-fall accident, it can be costly, and your family deserves compensation to help pay the bills. Having an experienced Massachusetts attorney fight on your behalf against the insurance companies and other opponents can see that you get fair treatment under the law.