Tampa Retail & Department Store Injury Lawyer
A busy retail or department store may host thousands of customers on any given day. It is therefore incumbent on the store’s ownership and management to have–and follow–procedures to keep their premises in reasonably safe condition. Otherwise, a customer may sustain serious and potentially deadly injuries due to a hazard outside of their control.
Unfortunately, there are too many retailers in the Tampa area who do not take their customer safety responsibilities seriously. If you are one of those affected customers, the Tampa retail and department store injury lawyer at Anderson & Anderson is here to help. Our Florida personal injury team has over 35 years of experience representing victims in premises liability cases against retail establishments whose negligence led to a preventable accident.
When Can You Sue a Retail Store for Negligence in Tampa?
Florida law does not impose strict liability on retail and department stores for customer injuries. That is to say, just because you are injured while shopping at the store that the ownership is automatically liable. Instead, premise liability requires the store owner to keep the premises in “reasonably safe” condition for customers and other members of the public who are lawfully on the property.
Some common examples of safety hazards in a retail or department store that can injure someone include:
- puddles of water or spilled liquids on the floor;
- obstructions in the store aisles;
- broken staircases, escalators, and elevators;
- insufficient lighting in stairwells and parking lots;
- improperly stocked or unsecured merchandise falling from store shelves; and
- ice, snow, or cracks in the sidewalks leading to the store’s entrances and exits.
A common defense in Florida premises liability cases is to “blame the victim” for their injuries. A retail or department store will often argue that the hazard that caused a customer’s injury was “open and obvious” and that the customer simply failed to pay attention to where they were walking. In order to rebut or preempt such a defense, it is imperative that the victim build as strong a case as possible for management and ownership’s negligence. This is where working with a qualified Tampa retail and department store injury lawyer can mean the difference between a significant settlement or jury award and walking away with nothing.
Contact Anderson & Anderson Today
If you can prove that the negligence of a retail or department store led to your accident, you are entitled to seek full compensation for your losses under Florida law. This includes the full amount of your past and estimated future medical bills, your lost income due to time missed from your job, and non-economic damages to compensate you for your pain and suffering and unresolved emotional trauma. Our Tampa retail and department store injury lawyers can review your specific accident and offer more tailored advice on the potential value of your claim.
Call Anderson & Anderson today at 813-251-0072 or contact us online to schedule an initial consultation.
