Unsafe floor cleaning practices may contribute to slip and fall accidents that cause serious injuries. Businesses throughout Nevada often contract services with companies to have their floors cleaned. If the business or cleaning service does not take the appropriate care, however, it may result in slips and falls. In fact, the Consumer Product Safety Commission reports that more than two million fall-related injuries each year occur as a direct result of floors and floor cleaning materials.
Why Do Floor Cleaning Slip and Fall Accidents Happen?
Numerous factors contribute to floor-cleaning related accidents. Some of the most common causes of slip and fall accidents include:
- Using floor cleaning materials too often
- Applying excess finishing material
- Using improper cleaning or scrubbing techniques
- Leaving soap residue
- Not properly stripping the finish applied previously
- Not following the proper buffing techniques for a particular flooring surface
Depending on the situation and cause of the accident, liability for the resulting injuries may fall to the property owner where the slip-and-fall occurred, the cleaning company, or both.
Slip and Fall Injuries
People who slip, trip, or fall may suffer a range of injuries. Bruises, cuts, and abrasions, as well as strains, sprains, and broken bones, are commonly caused by slips and falls. People may also suffer head or spinal injuries as a result of slipping and falling. These and other injuries may require medical treatment and time away from work while people recover.
Liability for Slip and Fall Injuries
Victims who suffer slip and fall injuries may seek to hold the party responsible for the accident financially liable for their losses. In accident claims, the injured victims have the burden of proving negligence on the part of the floor cleaning service or property owner.
To recover compensation for injuries caused by slipping or tripping, people must show that a slip-and-fall hazard existed and that the property owner or cleaning contractor should have reasonably known about the danger. Further, victims and their slip and fall lawyers must convey that the accident occurred and they suffered their injuries as a direct result of the hazard. Slip-and-fall injury victims may also have to prove that they had the authorization to be on the property and that the cleaning company serviced the property prior to the accident.