If you’re like most people, you go shopping every week. Your trips may include a visit to the local Trader Joe’s, H Mart Plano, Central Market, Market Street, Super Fresh Mart, Fiesta Mart, Walmart, Target, or home stores like Home Depot and Lowe’s. When we go shopping for food or other household items, we don’t usually think about getting injured at one of our favorite stores, but believe us, injuries happen at stores like those mentioned above every day. While a slip and fall accident may come to your mind first, there is another breed of accident that commonly occurs at grocery stores and superstores and it’s called “falling merchandise claims.”
What Causes Merchandise to Fall?
There are multiple reasons why merchandise falls and when it does, it can be extremely dangerous for the shoppers who happen to break the merchandise’s fall. Often, the causes are merchandise that is stacked too high, or an employee or customer accidentally knocks merchandise over. In one example, dallasnews.com reported about a woman, D. Bishop, who was shopping at a Walmart in July of 2012, when a box weighing about 15 pounds fell on her head. After the accident, the woman sought medical attention from an urgent care facility, which diagnosed her with a head contusion and a cervical strain. Ms. Bishop visited five different doctors and underwent steroid injections and physical therapy, but she was still experiencing pain. The jury found a Walmart employee to be negligent when he was stacking shelves near Ms. Bishop, who said that most of the time he worked as a cashier and wasn’t trained in how to stock shelves. Despite the fact that Walmart appealed the case, the court ruled in Ms. Bishop’s favor and awarded her $1.39 million in damages. Next: Slip & Fall Accidents: Who is At fault?
If you were injured by falling merchandise in Plano or the surrounding areas, we urge you to contact The Zendeh Del Law Firm, PLLC to file a claim for compensation.