Slip and Fall Accidents on Snow and Ice in New Hampshire Cause Significant Personal Injury – Do you have a Case?

As pedestrians in New Hampshire, we encounter a lot of snow and ice during the winter months.   These slippery and often hazardous conditions cause slips and falls which can result in serious personal injury.  Often victims of these accidents wonder whether they have a case, and whether they can recover compensation for their damages, which many times are significant.  The answer is yes, however pursuing such a case is not always easy.   First, there must be a responsible party who has a legal duty to properly and safely maintain the hazardous area, whether it be a sidewalk, parking lot, steps and grounds of a condominium or apartment, or any other public or private place.   Second, it must be demonstrated that the responsible party was negligent in their maintenance of the area, i.e., snow clearing, salting and sanding.  Third, under a new law passed last year by the New Hampshire legislature, if the property owner or snow removal contractor is “certified” by the state, they may well have civil immunity for claims arising from a failure to properly salt or sand.  Fourth, responsible parties in these cases always blame the injured person, claiming that the should have done a better job watching where they were walking.   Therefore, in these cases like most other injury cases, it is very important for the victim of a slip and fall to contact an attorney at the earliest possible time.   It is also important to take contemporaneous photographs of the area of the fall.   Property owners and businesses will often quickly rectify a negligent situation after receiving notice of the injury, so therefore, in order to preserve evidence of the condition for future use in the claims process or in court, photographs are critical.   The Law Offices of Peter E. Hutchins, PLLC represent scores of injured people who have suffered due to winter slips and falls.   Please call for an appointment.