Accidents in Retail Stores: The Dangers of Falling Merchandise

Shopping should be a relaxing and enjoyable experience. But unfortunately, shelves are often stacked too high with merchandise, posing a safety risk to customers. Whether you are in a supermarket, clothing store, furniture store, warehouse store, toy store, or any other retail environment, improperly stacked merchandise can cause products to fall, injuring the shopper below. The injuries that can result from accidents in retail stores can be severe — or even fatal. If you suffered an injury from falling merchandise, you may be entitled to hold the retail store liable for negligence.

Common Causes of Falling Merchandise

It’s not uncommon for merchandise to be stacked to the ceiling in retail stores. However, when boxes are placed above eye level, it can be difficult for customers walking by to get a clear view of the potential hazard they present. Although this practice can be convenient for stores by eliminating the need for backroom storage, these stacks of merchandise can sometimes come toppling down on a shopper below.

There can be many causes of falling merchandise accidents in retail stores, including the following:

• Heavy items that were improperly placed too high — When heavy items are stacked on top shelves, they can topple over and strike a customer who is walking by.
• Improper employee training — Employees should be properly trained to stack shelves in a safe manner.
• Unsecured merchandise — While merchandise is typically stacked on freestanding shelving units, it usually isn’t secured with any safety restraints or netting. This can make it more likely to fall below.
• Storing merchandise larger than the shelving unit — When merchandise does not properly fit into the shelving unit, it can be unstable and fall.
• Failure to warn — Warning signs should be visibly placed alerting customers of the dangers of falling merchandise.
• Failure to inspect — While products may shift throughout the day, store managers should inspect shelving regularly to ensure products do not pose a safety risk.

Injuries from falling merchandise can be serious and require extensive medical treatment and time out of work. A shopper may suffer catastrophic injuries such as concussion, traumatic brain injury, broken bones, neck injuries, paralysis, nerve damage, permanent disability, or fatality. By filing a personal injury lawsuit against the retail store, an injured shopper may be able to recover the economic and non-economic damages they incurred due to the injury from falling merchandise.

When Can a Retail Store Be Held Liable for Injuries Caused by Falling Merchandise?

A retail store may be held liable for a customer’s injury from falling merchandise if it can be shown that the store was negligent. Importantly, a retail store has a legal duty to ensure a safe environment for shoppers. If it fails to do so and a customer suffers harm as a result, the store may be accountable for the economic and non-economic losses they suffered.

Specifically, negligence can arise in connection with an injury from falling merchandise at a retail store if the store knew (or should have known) about a dangerous condition that it failed to remedy in a timely manner, such as improperly stacked shelves. A retail store can also be held liable for failure to warn about falling merchandise in the aisles or not training employees how to stack shelves properly.

Falling object accidents in retail stores are extremely fact specific. A store might attempt to blame the customer for the accident if they moved an object or engaged in some other behavior that caused the object to fall — but a victim can still recover damages even if they are partly to blame for the accident. It’s crucial to have an experienced premises liability attorney who knows how to investigate these incidents and can gather the evidence needed to support a claim for an injury from a falling object.

Recoverable Damages for Retail Store Accidents

A customer who sustained an injury from falling merchandise in a retail store may be eligible to recover a wide range of damages under Washington Law. Economic damages are meant to compensate a victim for the monetary damages they incurred due to the harm they suffered. This category of damages can include a broad scope of losses, such as unreimbursed medical expenses, lost earnings, out-of-pocket costs, and other pecuniary losses.

Non-economic damages are also referred to as pain and suffering damages. These types of losses can be much more difficult to quantify. They can include compensation for the physical harm and mental anguish caused by the injuries, in addition to loss of enjoyment of life, disfigurement, and emotional distress.

Contact an Experienced Washington Personal Injury Attorney

In the event you have suffered an injury from falling merchandise in a retail store, it’s essential to consult with a knowledgeable Washington personal injury attorney who can advise you regarding your legal rights and remedies. With locations in Burien and Bellevue, Herron Law Office, PLLC is committed to helping the victims of negligence in Washington recover the maximum compensation to which they are entitled for their injuries.

If you’ve been hurt in an accident caused by the negligence of another, we welcome you to contact us for a consultation to discuss your case by calling (425) 600-2580.