Injured in the Grocery Store? Turn to New Jersey’s Experienced Grocery Store Accident Attorneys for Compensation
The grocery store is a part of daily life. Everyone needs groceries, and every day millions of people fill up their carts in New Jersey’s supermarkets. It stands to reason that constant cart use would yield countless injuries from carts that flip over, wheels that jam and, of course, faulty child safety straps.
If you’ve been injured in one of New Jersey’s busy supermarkets, contact the experienced personal injury lawyers at Bramnick, Rodriguez, Grabas, Arnold & Mangan, LLC. We understand how an injury at the grocery store can affect your day-to-day life and we’ve helped thousands of people in Newark, Scotch Plains, Westfield and Jersey City get compensated for their injuries.
Freezers and refrigerators can leak, forming puddles that are nearly invisible under bright fluorescent lighting. Often, a shopper can’t even tell there is water on the floor until they’ve slipped and fallen.
Fresh produce cases use automatic sprayers to keep fruit and vegetables from spoiling. Several times an hour the sprayers coat the produce – and the floor in front of it – with a fine mist. If the store does not have proper mats on the floor to provide traction, the produce section can quickly become an ice rink.
On weekends, or when bad weather is predicted, the grocery store aisles are packed with shoppers. Inevitably, there are accidents and spills. If an employee can’t get to a spill right away, it quickly becomes a slipping hazard for the customer.
Shopping Carts in NJ Supermarkets Are a Hazard for Adults and Children
The Washington Post reported that more than 24,000 children are injured by shopping carts each year. The majority of these injuries happen when a child falls out of a shopping cart, or the cart tips over. Adults can receive lacerations from the sharp metal of a damaged shopping cart, or have hands and fingers pinched in the cart’s moving parts.
To avoid injury, you should always check your cart for damage before you begin using it. When putting children in a shopping cart, always properly use safety straps and be sure your child is securely situated in the cart. Ultimately, it is the store’s responsibility to make sure that all carts are in safe, working condition.
What to Do If You Are Injured at a New Jersey Supermarket
If you have an accident at the supermarket, the first thing you should do is call for the manager, or ask the person closest to you to call for the manager. The manager should see the scene of your accident exactly as it was when the accident occurred. Take photos of the area to show that there were no signs posted alerting shoppers to the water hazard.
Most grocery stores require that their employees document all accidents that occur on the premise. You or the manager will likely fill out an incident report detailing what happened. Be sure to ask the manager for a copy of this report. In some cases, the manager may refuse because typically the reports are for store purposes only. Ask if you can take a photo of it. Regardless, if it becomes necessary information in a later lawsuit, your attorney can subpoena that report.
If possible, look for people who witnessed your accident. Friends and family who accompanied you to the store are good witnesses, but independent eyewitnesses are better. Do your best to collect names and contact information for anyone who saw your accident occur. People may not want to get involved for fear they will have to go to court later. If that happens, try to get a statement from those witnesses.
Bring All the Information Regarding Your New Jersey Grocery Store Accident to an Experienced Personal Injury Lawyer
Whether you have extensive documentation, eyewitness accounts and cell phone photos, or just your own memory of what happened, the premises liability attorneys at Bramnick, Rodriguez, Grabas, Arnold & Mangan, LLC can help. Contact our offices and request a free consultation. We’ll fight to get you the compensation you need, and get you back on your feet.
