Slip and Fall Accidents at Food Courts

As a child you were in awe of adults who could carry a tray full of food and drinks from the counter of a restaurant to the table. The first time you attempted this maneuver, it may have resulted in a drink spill, or your parent may have insisted on carrying the drinks by hand while you carried the tray full of food. Food courts are where you are more likely to find food spilled on the floor than anywhere else.  How many times have you seen orange traffic cones or yellow “caution” signs on the floor of a mall food court? It seems like, if you go to the food court at Sawgrass Mills, there is always at least one person with a mop bucket; sometimes you will even see multiple employees cleaning up multiple spills simultaneously. In other words, if you are responsible for keeping a food court in safe condition, you can never be too careful. People who get injured in slip and fall accidents at food courts and other retail locations have the right to sue for damages if they can prove that the management failed to keep the premises in safe condition. If you got injured when you slipped on spilled food or beverage at a food court, contact a Fort Lauderdale premises liability lawyer.

Court Rules in Favor of Costco After Customer Slips on Melted Ice Cream

It is worth the price of membership to have access to the Costco food court. In an era when a meal at McDonald’s breaks the bank, Costco is where you can pay just over a dollar and get a slice of pizza big enough to feed several people or an ice cream cone that can keep you cool all summer long. In October 2016, Dorin Trofin and his wife ordered a whole pizza from the Costco in Fort Myers after they finished their shopping, and then they sat down at a table to wait while the kitchen staff cooked the pizza to order.

When the pizza was ready, Trofin walked toward the counter and slipped on a puddle of melted vanilla ice cream that was about the same color as the off-white floor of the food court; he described it as being the same size as a dinner plate. He suffered injuries serious enough to require medical treatment, and he sued Costco for compensation for the accident-related medical expenses. At the trial, witnesses from Costco testified that the store employs floor walkers to check for spills in all areas of the store. The plaintiff argued that the store should assign floor walkers to more frequent inspections of the food court, since it is where the spills are the most likely to be. Eventually, the court ruled in favor of the defendant, but it did not grant a summary judgment; it only reached this decision at the conclusion of a trial.

Set Up a Consultation Today

A personal injury lawyer can help you if you got injured in an accidental fall on a slipper floor at a food court.  Contact Boone & Davis in Fort Lauderdale, Florida or call 954-566-9919 to explore your potential recovery options today.

Source:

law.com/dailybusinessreview/2019/11/25/store-denies-food-court-visitor-slipped-on-ice-cream/