Restaurant Slip and Fall Expert Witness: Slips, Trips and Falls
Slips, trips, and falls are among the safety hazards that restaurants and bars must manage.
A spilled drink, wet floor, loose mat, uneven surface, poor lighting, or obstructed walkway can quickly create a dangerous condition.
But after someone falls, the condition of the floor is only part of the story.
A restaurant slip and fall expert witness may examine what was happening throughout the restaurant before, during, and after the incident.
Why Restaurant Slip and Fall Cases Are Different
Restaurants are constantly changing environments.
Employees carry food and drinks. Customers enter and leave. Floors are cleaned. Ice melts. Drinks spill. Food falls. Chairs move. Deliveries arrive.
Because conditions can change quickly, restaurant procedures for inspections, cleaning, employee communication, and hazard response can become important areas of analysis.
The question isn’t simply:
Was the floor wet?
There may be many more questions.
How did the condition develop?
How long did it exist?
Were inspections performed?
Were employees trained to identify hazards?
What procedures were in place?
Were those procedures actually followed?
What Does a Restaurant Slip and Fall Expert Witness Examine?
A restaurant slip and fall expert witness can examine the restaurant operations surrounding an incident.
Depending on the case, that analysis may include:
- Floor conditions
- Inspection procedures
- Cleaning procedures
- Employee training
- Warning signs
- Lighting
- Mats and flooring
- Incident reports
- Surveillance video
- Management oversight
- Restaurant policies and procedures
- Applicable industry standards
Each case is different.
Therefore, the analysis should focus on the specific restaurant, the specific condition, and the circumstances surrounding the incident.
Restaurant Slip and Fall Hazards
Wet floors are an obvious concern, but they are not the only potential hazard.
Restaurant slip and fall incidents may involve spilled beverages, grease, food debris, tracked-in rainwater, damaged flooring, loose mats, stairs, changes in elevation, or objects in walkways.
The location also matters.
A dining room presents different conditions from a kitchen. A restroom presents different concerns from an entrance. A parking lot is different from a bar area.
Understanding restaurant operations helps put those conditions into context.
Employee Training and Management Oversight
Written policies alone do not tell the entire story.
Employees need to know how to recognize a hazard. They also need to know what to do when they find one.
Managers play an important role in that process.
Training records, inspection practices, cleaning schedules, employee responsibilities, and management oversight may provide important information about the restaurant’s safety practices.
That’s why a restaurant slip and fall expert witness looks beyond the spot where someone fell.
The entire operational picture may matter.
Restaurant Slip and Fall Expert Witness Analysis
Howard Cannon has decades of restaurant, bar, and hospitality industry experience.
As a Restaurant Expert Witness, he analyzes restaurant operations, management practices, employee training, safety procedures, and industry standards involved in restaurant-related personal injury cases.
A slip and fall may happen in seconds.
Understanding everything that led to those few seconds can require a much deeper look.
Look at the hazard. Look at the procedures. Look at the training. Look at the management.
Contact our office today at (800)300-5764 or complete our contact form.