A fall on an icy sidewalk or a wet grocery store floor can break a wrist, tear a shoulder or cause a concussion. The bills start the same week. If someone else’s property caused the fall, a slip and fall lawyer in PEI can make the occupier’s insurer pay for it. This page explains how that works on Prince Edward Island: the statute, the deadlines, the defences insurers run, and what a claim pays.
Many Islanders assume that slipping on ice is a normal part of an Island winter. The law says otherwise. A person who occupies property owes a duty to take reasonable care for the people who come onto it. When they fail, they pay. Michael B. Murphy, KC, a former Attorney General of New Brunswick, leads the firm, and the Charlottetown office handles Island files directly.
The principle applies in Charlottetown, Summerside and every rural community in between. The firm works on contingency, so there is no win, no fee, and no bill while you recover.
The Occupiers’ Liability Act Puts the Duty on Whoever Controls the Property
The Occupiers’ Liability Act governs slip and fall claims on the Island. It says an “occupier” owes a duty of care to anyone entering the premises. The occupier is not only the owner. A tenant, a property manager or the business running the store can each be an occupier, and a slip and fall lawyer in PEI names every one of them as a defendant so the claim does not fail on the wrong party.
The fight is nearly always over what “reasonable” means. A store owner does not have to keep the floor dry every second of a rainstorm. The owner does have to run a system: inspections at set intervals, mopping, warning signs. If staff walked past a spill for an hour, the duty was breached. Maintenance logs, camera footage and witness statements prove that. A slip and fall lawyer in PEI demands them early, before the footage is overwritten.
The duty holds even where you were partly careless. PEI’s Contributory Negligence Act splits fault by percentage. If a court finds you 20 percent at fault for not watching your step, your damages drop by 20 percent and no more. Insurers try to push that percentage up. Your lawyer’s job is to push it back down with evidence about the hazard, the lighting and what the occupier did or did not do.
Ice, Spills, Stairs and Municipal Sidewalks Cause Most PEI Falls
Ice is the most frequent cause. Parking lots and sidewalks freeze, thaw and refreeze through an Island winter. An occupier gets a reasonable time to clear snow and salt ice, but “reasonable” is measured in hours, not days. If the ice sat untreated after the storm ended, a slip and fall lawyer in PEI can show the delay was unreasonable.
Indoor falls are as common and often worse. Spills left on aisle floors, wet entrance mats, freshly washed floors with no sign, loose carpet edges and poorly lit stairwells all produce claims. Each needs a different investigation: a spill claim turns on inspection logs, while a stair claim turns on the building code and the tread measurements.
Outdoor hazards other than ice include potholes in private lots and crumbling concrete steps. A fall on a municipal sidewalk is a different case again. Claims against a city or town carry notice requirements far shorter than the ordinary limitation period. Miss the notice and the claim can be dismissed no matter how serious the injury. The firm sends that notice as soon as a file opens.
A Doctor’s Visit, Photographs and an Incident Report Protect the Claim
See a doctor the same day, even if the injury seems minor. Adrenaline hides concussion symptoms and internal injuries. The medical record from that visit ties the injury to the fall. Without it, the insurer argues the pain came from somewhere else.
If you can, photograph the hazard before you leave: the ice patch, the spill, the broken step. Take several angles and at least one wide shot that shows the location. Get the names and phone numbers of anyone who saw you fall. Photographs and witnesses are the evidence that reconstructs the scene months later, when the ice is long gone.
Report the fall to the owner or manager before leaving and ask for a copy of the incident report. Do not sign anything that admits fault or waives a claim. Keep the statement short and factual: “I fell on that ice patch and I am hurt.” Then call a slip and fall lawyer in PEI. From that point the firm handles every call from the occupier and the insurer, so nothing you say can be used to cut the claim.
A Slip and Fall Lawyer in PEI Claims General, Special and Future Care Damages
A claim is built from categories of damages. General damages pay for pain, suffering and loss of enjoyment of life. Canadian courts cap general damages, and the amount is argued from earlier decisions on comparable injuries. A wrist fracture that heals cleanly and a spinal injury that does not sit at opposite ends of that range.
Special damages are the money the fall cost you: prescriptions, physiotherapy, braces and crutches, mileage to appointments, and wages lost while off work. Keep every receipt in one folder. Small amounts add up to thousands over a long recovery, and unreceipted expenses are hard to recover.
Loss of income is claimed separately. Wages lost while off work are special damages. If the injury stops you returning to your previous job, the claim adds loss of future income capacity, calculated from your pre-accident income and your reduced ability to work. A tradesperson with a permanently damaged shoulder loses more than the weeks off. The claim has to reflect that.
Serious injuries add future care costs. For a spinal injury or chronic pain, a slip and fall lawyer in PEI retains medical experts and an actuary to calculate what treatment, equipment and assistance will cost over your lifetime. That figure is often the largest part of the claim, and it is the part insurers fight hardest.
The Statute of Limitations Gives Two Years, and Municipalities Get Days
PEI’s Statute of Limitations gives you two years from the date of the fall to start a lawsuit. Two years sounds generous. It is not. Footage is overwritten, witnesses move, and memories blur. A slip and fall lawyer in PEI needs months to gather medical records, get expert opinions and attempt a settlement before filing.
Claims against government bodies are tighter still. A fall on a City of Charlottetown sidewalk may require formal written notice of the intent to sue within days. That notice is separate from the two-year limitation, and missing it can end the case regardless of the injury.
The limitation period is also a negotiating fact. Insurers know the date. An adjuster who strings out talks until the deadline is close is counting on the claimant being unrepresented. The firm files before the two years run whatever the state of negotiations, so the claim is never lost to the calendar.
Exceptions exist for minors and for people who lacked capacity at the time. Do not plan around them. Contact a lawyer as soon as you are medically stable.
The Firm Has a Charlottetown Office and a Former Attorney General at Its Head
The firm has five offices, including one in Charlottetown. A slip and fall lawyer in PEI at the firm has dealt with the Island courts and with the adjusters who will handle your file.
Michael B. Murphy, KC, served as Attorney General and Minister of Justice in New Brunswick. He has seen legislation such as the Occupiers’ Liability Act from the drafting side, and every lawyer at the firm works to that standard.
You are a person who has been hurt, not a file number. The firm listens to what happened and explains your options in plain language.
The Occupier’s Insurer Works to Pay as Little as Possible
The occupier’s insurer is not on your side. Its goal is to pay as little as possible. Adjusters often call within days of a fall and offer a small settlement. Early offers almost never cover the long-term cost of an injury, and a signed release ends the claim for good. A slip and fall lawyer in PEI will tell you not to sign one without advice.
Adjusters also ask for a recorded statement in the first days, before you know the full extent of the injury. What you say then is compared against every later medical record. If the statement says your neck was fine and the MRI three weeks later shows a disc injury, the insurer argues the disc injury came from somewhere else.
Adjusters ask leading questions. They want you to say you “weren’t looking” or that you “have a bad knee anyway.” Those phrases reappear later as reasons to cut or deny the claim. Once you have a lawyer, the insurer deals with the firm, not you.
If the insurer refuses a fair number, the firm goes to trial. Michael B. Murphy, KC, has over 100 reported decisions. Insurers know which firms settle cheap to avoid a courtroom and price their offers accordingly. A lawyer willing to litigate changes that price.
The Claim Needs Duty, Breach, Causation and Damages
A slip and fall claim has four elements: duty, breach, causation and damages. The defendant was an occupier under the Occupiers’ Liability Act who owed you a duty. The occupier breached it by leaving a hazard. The hazard caused the fall. The fall caused the injuries claimed. A slip and fall lawyer in PEI gathers evidence on each, because the claim fails if any element is missing.
Causation is where insurers dig in. They argue you fell because of your shoes, not the puddle, or that your back pain is an old injury from years ago. Medical experts and, where needed, accident reconstruction answer that.
The occupier’s maintenance system is the other battleground. Is there a written policy for checking floors every 30 minutes? Was it followed that day? If no records exist, the argument that the system was inadequate becomes far easier. Knowing which documents to demand at discovery is what separates a paid claim from a dismissed one.
Homes, Stores and Public Property Each Carry a Different Standard
A fall at a friend’s house feels awkward to pursue. In practice the claim is against the homeowner’s insurance policy, not the friend’s savings. A slip and fall lawyer in PEI can run that claim without wrecking the friendship.
Rental properties add a question of who the occupier is. A landlord who keeps control of the common stairwell and the parking lot is the occupier of those areas. The tenant is the occupier of the unit. The lease usually says which. The firm reads it before deciding whom to sue.
Commercial properties such as malls and big-box stores carry a high volume of foot traffic and a correspondingly high duty to inspect. The firm looks at the store’s history of prior falls. A known trouble spot that was never fixed supports a larger award.
Public property, such as parks and government buildings, brings in the federal Crown Liability and Proceedings Act or municipal bylaws. These are the hardest claims because governments have policy immunity. A decision not to salt a street for budget reasons is a policy decision and usually protected. Failing to carry out the salting plan the government already adopted is negligent operation and is not protected. Drawing that line is the whole case against a public body.
The Firm Reviews PEI Slip and Fall Files on a No Win, No Fee Basis
Do not wait for the injury to sort itself out. The firm handles the legal side while you recover, and works on a no win, no fee basis.
The firm runs personal injury files across the Atlantic provinces, from car accidents to trip and fall accidents. Call and a slip and fall lawyer in PEI will review the file the same week.
FAQ
How Much Is My Slip and Fall Case Worth in PEI?
It depends on the severity of the injury, its effect on your work, and the occupier’s share of fault. General damages cover pain and suffering. Special damages cover the money you lost. A slip and fall lawyer in PEI gives a first assessment at the free consultation and refines it as the medical picture settles.
What If I Slipped on Ice on a City Sidewalk?
Claims against a municipality carry short notice periods, in some cases 10 to 30 days. Contact a lawyer immediately so the notice is served in time. These cases often turn on whether the city followed its own winter maintenance policy.
Can I sue if there was a “Wet Floor” sign?
A sign helps the occupier but does not end the claim. If the sign was hidden, or the floor was too slippery for a sign to be an adequate warning, the case continues. Whether the warning was reasonable in the circumstances decides the point.
How Long Does a Slip and Fall Lawsuit Take in PEI?
Most files settle within 18 to 24 months. Cases with long-term injuries take longer because settling before you reach maximum medical recovery means guessing at future needs. Your lawyer will keep you informed at each stage.
What If I Am Partially Responsible for My Fall?
You can still recover. Under Prince Edward Island’s Contributory Negligence Act the award is reduced by your percentage of fault. If a judge finds your footwear was wrong for a snowy day and puts you at 25 percent, you recover 75 percent. A slip and fall lawyer in PEI works to keep that percentage as low as the evidence allows.
Every claim type the firm handles is listed under injury law areas, and the Charlottetown office takes the first call.