Dangerous Chair Accident Personal Injury

As humorous as chair breaking in movies can be, it’s no laughing matter in real life. These seemingly innocent pieces of furniture can cause serious injury to unsuspecting people. Chairs located in some of the most common areas, such as restaurants, theaters, and bars can cause injury if they have broken pieces or collapse due to high usage, weight, or incorrect assembly. Chairs that are high, recline, or have wheels can also cause injury if they tip over.

Chair injuries can happen any place where there are chairs. Some of the most common areas include;

• Restaurants: While the cuisine may vary between fast food, the corner café, family-style chains, or high-end restaurants, they all have one thing in common – chairs. Chairs are subject to high usage. Excessive weight or improper usage of chairs, such as standing on chairs to reach high places, can strain their components. Seat cushions, chair backs, or the screws used to hold the chair together can become loose or weaken significantly due to high usage. Over time, they can become lose and collapse. In other cases, parts of a chair can break, causing jagged edges that can be caught on unsuspecting patrons and restaurants workers as they walk by. Chair quality can also play a factor. Chain restaurants may have industrial strength chairs, however smaller establishments may opt for department-store chairs that are put together. Although they may look attractive, these chairs may not be meant for high usage or varying weight, which may result in chairs that collapse or parts that break off.
• Theaters: Many theaters have mechanical gears to help them open and close smoothly. If you are reaching down to pick up that packet of candy that you dropped, your hand may become lodged in the side. Theaters are also offering more reclining chair options that can result in injury to hands and fingers.
• Salons: Beauty and nail salons have special chairs that are made to provide comfort while you have your hair or nails done. While these chairs are made to adjust to their patron’s height, they can result in slips or falls if footrests or steps leading up to the chair are wet. Even the high position of the chair can cause a fall when you are trying to get in or out of the chair.
• Bars, coffee shops, and cafes – Many times, these establishments have tall chairs that may not have a back or arm-rests. The sheer height can cause a fall when sitting down or trying to stand up. Most tall chairs have a small bar or ledge that will allow a patron to step up to sit down on the chair. High usage can make these weak, causing them to break when someone steps up onto these to reach the seat of the chair.
• Meeting rooms: If you are attending a meeting, you may notice that the chairs in the conference room have wheels to facilitate pulling away from the table. Chairs with wheels can be unstable and move when people try to sit down, causing them to miss the chair completely. It can also be difficult to stand up if the wheels on the chair move. Other accidents can happen if the wheels fall off the chair or the chair is used a means to scoot about the room, causing a potential tip-over situation.

While these represent some of the most common areas that chairs exist in our daily lives, it is not all-inclusive. Waiting rooms, public libraries, outdoor concession stands, and hotels are a few examples of establishments were patrons use chairs on a regular basis.

Not necessarily. Chair accidents can occur for many reasons, including a patron using the chair incorrectly. For an establishment to be liable for a chair-related injury, a personal injury attorney can help to determine if they breached their duty under the legal concept of premise liability.

Premise liability refers to the responsibility that an establishment has to ensure that their chairs are safe for usage. If you or a loved one has sustained an injury from a chair, you will be required to prove that the restaurant should have reasonably known that the chair was damaged. You will also need to prove that they were negligent in that they failed to fix or remove the chair, thus breaching their responsibility to ensure safety. Finally, you will need to prove that you were injured as a result of their negligence and that you incurred monetary damages as a result.

If you’ve been injured as the result of a chair accident, seek medical attention immediately if your injuries are serious. If your injuries appear to be minor, have them checked out by a doctor as soon as possible. To help build your claim, be sure to take pictures of the broken chair, as well as any surrounding areas that may have contributed to the accident. Perhaps you fell out of the chair because the floor underneath was wet and your chair did not have any anti-slip components on the ends of the chair. In addition, write down the names and contact information of anyone who witnessed the accident. If the establishment completed a report on your injury, ask for a copy of this document. Finally, be sure to obtain copies of all medical bills and records regarding your injury.

If you’ve been injured in an accident involving a chair, contact the Florida personal injury attorneys at Wolfson & Leon for help. Our personal injury attorneys can evaluate the merits of your case, as well as answer your questions including what compensation that may be available to you. An attorney will defend your rights and work directly with the restaurant’s insurance company or legal team to help you recover damages associated with medical bills, lost wages, and continuing care. For a free consultation, contact Wolfson & Leon at (305) 285-1115.

Wolfson & Leon proudly serves the residents of South Florida. We serve the communities, and their surrounding cities and neighborhoods, from our offices located in Fort Lauderdale, Miami, Fort Myers, and West Palm Beach. If you or a loved one has been injured through no fault of your own contact the personal injury attorneys at Wolfson & Leon at (305) WOLFSON (965-3766).