South Jersey Hardware Store Slip & Fall Lawyer
Folks of a certain age remember going to the local hardware shop when they needed to pick up a tool or stock up on building supplies. These shops were small but crammed full of anything you could need. If it wasn’t out on the shelves, it was behind the counter or “in the back,” where the worker, often the owner, would go and fetch it for you. Those days are all but gone now. Nowadays, if you aren’t ordering online, you are taking a trip to the nearest Home Depot or Lowe’s, massive warehouses covering more than 100,000 square feet and offering everything you could possibly need for any kind of project in any room of your house, or even outdoors.
These massive hardware and home improvement stores have polished concrete slab floorings that are slippery when wet, and cases of heavy merchandise piled on shelves so high they need specialized rolling warehouse ladders to retrieve them. The risks are high for a slip and fall, trip and fall, or getting seriously injured if struck by falling merchandise. Hardware and home improvement store owners and managers are responsible to maintain their premises in a reasonably safe condition for customers and guests. If they don’t, they can and should be held liable for any accidental injuries that result. Call me, Joseph Monaco, South Jersey hardware store accident lawyer, and I will answer your questions over a free consultation and let you know how I can help you get the care and compensation you need and deserve after getting hurt because of the store’s negligence.
Hardware and Home Improvement Stores Contain Many Potential Hazards, Such as:
Slipping on a spilled drink or food item
Stores like Home Depot and Lowe’s often have vending machines outside, enticing customers to purchase a beverage and carry it into the store with them while shopping. Before the pandemic, these stores even operated their own hot dog stands. Customers can spend hours in these stores on the weekend and often bring in food or snacks. Store personnel and management are well aware of this fact and are obliged to routinely patrol the aisles, promptly cleaning up spills or putting up safety cones to warn of slipping hazards until the mess can be cleaned up.
Spilled products
Home Depot and Lowe’s sell oil, grease, paint, solvents, industrial cleaners and liquid products of all kinds. These products can get knocked over, break open, punctured, burst, or leak. Reasonable, periodic inspection of the store will uncover these dangers so staff can clean them up before somebody gets hurt. Store owners in New Jersey are liable for dangers on the premises they either had actual or constructive knowledge of, meaning they either knew or should have known about the hazard.
Rain and snow
Winter weather brings rain, sleet, ice and snow to the doorsteps of home improvement stores, and that wintry mix can get tracked into the store by customers. In addition to keeping their sidewalks clear of ice after a storm, store owners should also take care to lay out floor mats at entrances, replace them if they get soaked, damaged or mislaid, and keep the area around the front of the store clean and dry.
Tripping hazards
With what seems like miles of shelves from floor to ceiling, one would think these stores have plenty of space to stock their products. But you’ll still see items on the floor in front of shelves, or you won’t see them, and you’ll trip over them. From small pieces of loose hardware to small and large boxes or displays that stick out into the aisle, hardware and home improvement stores are sometimes awash in tripping hazards. Store workers should take care that any misplaced items are put where they belong, and other materials are kept off the floor where they could cause somebody to trip and fall.
Home Improvement Store Premises Liability Injuries Can Be Serious
Of the many different types of injuries one can suffer in a slip and fall or trip and fall in a New Jersey hardware store or home improvement store, some of the most common include:
- Broken hands or wrists from trying to break a fall
- Back and neck injuries, including broken back or neck or shoulder injuries
- Muscle strains and sprains, including torn muscles, tendons or ligaments
- Head injuries, including concussions and traumatic brain injuries
- Fractured hip
- Other fractures in the arm, leg or ankle
- Facial cuts and lacerations
Serving Atlantic City, Marlton, Cherry Hill, Vineland, Bridgeton, Millville, Camden, Trenton
- Mount Laurel Township Home Depot
- Absecon Home Depot
- Vineland Home Depot
- Cherry Hill Home Depot
- Philadelphia Lowe’s
- Voorhees Township Lowe’s
- Maple Shade Township Lowe’s
- Egg Harbor Township Lowe’s
- Millville Lowe’s
- Lawnside Lowe’s
- Willow Grove Home Depot
- Chester Lowe’s
Contact An Experienced South Jersey Hardware Store Slip & Fall Lawyer
Don’t take a slip and fall injury lying down when the accident wasn’t your fault. Call or text me, Joseph Monaco, at 609-277-3166 or 215-546-3166, and my law firm will help you hold the property owner liable for their negligence in maintaining their premises. I handle cases in Atlantic County, Burlington County, Camden County, Cumberland County, and Philadelphia. I offer a free consultation and a guaranteed no fee if no recovery for you. If you have been hurt in a slip and fall or premises liability accident in a New Jersey hardware or home improvement store, give me a call to start your claim today.
