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Guide · Updated

After a slip and fall: what to do and what to know

Falls happen in shops, apartment buildings, parking lots and offices. The first steps are simple: get care and keep a record. After that, a few questions decide most cases: what caused the fall, who controlled the place, and why you were there.

Right away

Get care, then write it down

  1. Get medical careSome injuries from a fall, such as head injuries, may not show right away. Tell the doctor you fell and how. How to get your medical records explains how to get copies later.
  2. Take photos before the spot is cleaned upThe floor or ground, any spill, ice, loose mat, broken step or poor lighting, and whether there was a warning sign. Photograph your shoes and your injuries too.
  3. Get namesWitnesses, and any employee who helped you. Note any cameras that may have recorded the fall.
  4. Keep what you worePut your shoes and clothes aside, as they were. Don’t clean or repair them.

Good to know

What usually decides a slip-and-fall case

A fall on someone else’s property doesn’t by itself mean they have to pay. These cases are usually called premises liability (an owner’s responsibility for the condition of a place).

Questions that often come up:

Good to know

Your own share of fault counts

The other side may say you weren’t watching where you walked. Most states compare everyone’s share of fault. In Texas, for example, you can’t recover (get money) if you are found more than 50% at fault1. Otherwise, what you get is cut by your share1. Your state’s page shows its fault rule.

Your state’s rules: these state guides each explain how fault is shared, with the law cited: Arizona, Florida, Michigan, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia and Wyoming.

Within weeks

If you fell on public property

Falls in a city building, a public school, a park or on a sidewalk can have different rules. In Texas, for example, a government body can be responsible for an injury caused by a condition of its property if a private person would be2. But for a dangerous condition on its premises, it owes only the duty a private owner owes a “licensee”, unless you paid to use the place2. A licensee is, roughly, a visitor who isn’t a customer.

Notice deadlines can be short

In Texas, a government body must be given written notice of a claim within six months of the fall3. A city’s charter can set its own notice period3. Other states have their own rules. Find your state’s deadlines.

These state guides each have a section on claims against a city, county or state, with the law cited: Arizona, Florida, Michigan, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia and Wyoming.

Good to know

If you fell at work

A fall at work usually goes through workers’ compensation, a separate system with its own forms and deadlines. Tell your employer in writing. The rules vary by state. In Texas, private employers can generally choose whether to carry workers’ compensation insurance4. If yours does, you must tell your employer about the injury no later than 30 days after it happens. You must also file a claim with the state’s workers’ compensation division no later than one year after5. Other states set similar notice deadlines.

Federal workplace-safety rules require employers to keep floors clean and, as far as they can, dry. Walking surfaces must also be kept free of hazards such as spills, snow and ice8. These rules protect employees.

This week

Your deadline to file

Every state sets a deadline to file an injury lawsuit. In Texas, for example, most injury suits must be brought within two years9. Find your state’s deadline.

When you’re ready

If you want a lawyer

You don’t have to hire one. If you talk to firms, bring your photos, the incident report number and your medical records, and ask how often they handle falls. See how to choose a personal injury lawyer and how contingency fees work.

Slip and fall rules in your state

The deadline to file and the other rules for a slip and fall case are set by each state. Pick yours.

When you’re ready

Find an injury lawyer, on your terms

Search by city and type of case. Every firm’s facts show where they came from and when. We don’t rank firms. Listing is free and doesn’t depend on buying anything.

Find a lawyer near you

Sources

Where the legal facts on this page come from

  1. Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code ch. 33“§ 33.001: In an action to which this chapter applies, a claimant may not recover damages if his percentage of responsibility is greater than 50 percent. § 33.012(a): If the claimant is not barred from recovery under Section 33.001, the court shall reduce the amount of damages to be recovered by the claimant with respect to a cause of action by a percentage equal to the claimant's percentage of responsibility. § 33.012(b): If the claimant has settled with one or more persons, the court shall further reduce the amount of damages to be recovered by the claimant with respect to a cause of action by the sum of the dollar amounts of all settlements. § 33.012(c): Notwithstanding Subsection (b), if the claimant in a health care liability claim filed under Chapter 74 has settled with one or more persons, the court shall further reduce the amount of damages to be recovered by the claimant with respect to a cause of action by an amount equal to one of the following, as elected by the defendant: (1) the sum of the dollar amounts of all settlements; or (2) a percentage equal to each settling person's percentage of responsibility as found by the trier of fact.”Texas Legislature (statutes current through the 89th Leg., 2nd C.S., 2025) · read 7 Nov 2026Read the source
  2. Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code §§ 101.021, 101.022 (Texas Tort Claims Act: liability; premise and special defects)“§ 101.021. A governmental unit in the state is liable for: … (2) personal injury and death so caused by a condition or use of tangible personal or real property if the governmental unit would, were it a private person, be liable to the claimant according to Texas law. § 101.022. (a) Except as provided in Subsection (c), if a claim arises from a premise defect, the governmental unit owes to the claimant only the duty that a private person owes to a licensee on private property, unless the claimant pays for the use of the premises. (b) The limitation of duty in this section does not apply to the duty to warn of special defects such as excavations or obstructions on highways, roads, or streets or to the duty to warn of the absence, condition, or malfunction of traffic signs, signals, or warning devices as is required by Section 101.060.”Texas Legislature, Texas Constitution and Statutes · read 7 Nov 2026Read the source
  3. Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 101.101“(a) A governmental unit is entitled to receive notice of a claim against it under this chapter not later than six months after the day that the incident giving rise to the claim occurred. The notice must reasonably describe: (1) the damage or injury claimed; (2) the time and place of the incident; and (3) the incident. (b) A city's charter and ordinance provisions requiring notice within a charter period permitted by law are ratified and approved. (c) The notice requirements provided or ratified and approved by Subsections (a) and (b) do not apply if the governmental unit has actual notice that death has occurred, that the claimant has received some injury, or that the claimant's property has been damaged.”Texas Legislature (statutes current through the 89th Leg., 2nd C.S., 2025) · read 7 Nov 2026Read the source
  4. Tex. Lab. Code § 406.002 (coverage generally elective)“(a) Except for public employers and as otherwise provided by law, an employer may elect to obtain workers' compensation insurance coverage. (b) An employer who elects to obtain coverage is subject to this subtitle.”Texas Legislature, Texas Constitution and Statutes · read 7 Nov 2026Read the source
  5. Tex. Lab. Code §§ 409.001, 409.003 (notice of injury to employer; claim for compensation)“§ 409.001. (a) An employee or a person acting on the employee's behalf shall notify the employer of the employee of an injury not later than the 30th day after the date on which: (1) the injury occurs … § 409.003. An employee or a person acting on the employee's behalf shall file with the division a claim for compensation for an injury not later than one year after the date on which: (1) the injury occurred …”Texas Legislature, Texas Constitution and Statutes · read 7 Nov 2026Read the source
  6. N.Y. Workers' Compensation Law § 18 (notice of injury or death)“Notice of an injury or death for which compensation is payable under this chapter shall be given to the employer within thirty days after the accident causing such injury, and also in case of the death of the employee resulting from such injury, within thirty days after such death. … The notice shall be in writing, and contain the name and address of the employee, and state in ordinary language the time, place, nature and cause of the injury …”New York State Senate, Laws of New York (read on nysenate.gov) · read 8 Nov 2026Read the source
  7. Fla. Stat. § 440.185 (notice of injury or death)“(1) An employee who suffers an injury arising out of and in the course of employment shall advise his or her employer of the injury within 30 days after the date of or initial manifestation of the injury. Failure to so advise the employer shall bar a petition under this chapter unless: (a) The employer or the employer’s agent had actual knowledge of the injury; …”Florida Legislature (2026 Florida Statutes, read on flsenate.gov) · read 8 Nov 2026Read the source
  8. 29 C.F.R. § 1910.22 (walking-working surfaces: general requirements)“(a) Surface conditions. The employer must ensure: (1) All places of employment, passageways, storerooms, service rooms, and walking-working surfaces are kept in a clean, orderly, and sanitary condition. (2) The floor of each workroom is maintained in a clean and, to the extent feasible, in a dry condition. … (3) Walking-working surfaces are maintained free of hazards such as sharp or protruding objects, loose boards, corrosion, leaks, spills, snow, and ice.”Electronic Code of Federal Regulations (eCFR), current as of 1 Oct 2026 · read 7 Nov 2026Read the source
  9. Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 16.003“(a) Except as provided by Sections 16.010, 16.0031, and 16.0045, a person must bring suit for trespass for injury to the estate or to the property of another, conversion of personal property, taking or detaining the personal property of another, personal injury, forcible entry and detainer, and forcible detainer not later than two years after the day the cause of action accrues. (b) A person must bring suit not later than two years after the day the cause of action accrues in an action for injury resulting in death. The cause of action accrues on the death of the injured person.”Texas Legislature (statutes current through the 89th Leg., 2nd C.S., 2025) · read 7 Nov 2026Read the source

This is general information, not legal advice.