Home › Practice Areas › Premises Liability › Slip & Fall
A wet floor with no sign in a Westshore plaza. A cracked sidewalk outside a Channelside restaurant. One step and you’re on the ground with a fractured wrist and ER bills nobody planned for. The property owner goes quiet. Their insurance company calls, and the first thing out of their mouth is that it was your fault. They’re following a script. Blame the victim. Label the hazard “obvious.” Drag things out until the medical bills get heavy enough to force a cheap settlement. This is a long and arduous process; proceed without the proper representation from Laura T. Sulisufay, Esq., and Suli Law Group. Talk to a Tampa slip and fall lawyer who understands these tactics.
Florida law sets a clear standard. The property owner owed you a duty of care. They breached that duty by ignoring the hazard, failing to repair it, or failing to post a warning. That breach directly caused your injuries. The question that decides your case is whether the owner knew about the danger or should have known. If a property owner cut corners and you got hurt, you have grounds for a claim.
Florida law sets a clear standard. The property owner owed you a duty of care. They breached that duty by ignoring the hazard, failing to repair it, or failing to post a warning. That breach directly caused your injuries.The question that decides your case is whether the owner knew about the danger or should have known. If a property owner cut corners and you got hurt, you have grounds for a claim.
The property owner is the starting point, but rarely the only party on the hook. A business leasing the space controls what happens inside its walls, and that control creates liability. Property management companies responsible for maintenance can share fault. Falls on public sidewalks or inside government buildings are subject to different rules and shorter filing deadlines. Insurance companies treat slip-and-fall claims as easy targets. Their adjusters will say you should have been paying attention, that the hazard was in plain sight. These are not observations. They are rehearsed tactics built to shrink what they owe you. We’ve watched them get assembled from the defense side of the table, and we know exactly where they fall apart. An experienced premises liability lawyer Tampa residents trust can help identify every responsible party and protect your claim.
Two years. Under the Florida slip and fall statute of limitations, you generally have two years to file a claim. When HB 837 took effect in 2023, Florida halved the personal injury statute of limitations. The clock starts on the date of your fall. Once two years pass, the courthouse door closes regardless of how strong your evidence is. Claims against government entities carry even shorter notice windows. Every week you wait is a week the property owner has to fix the hazard, overwrite security footage, and let witness memories fade.
Start at the scene. Photograph the hazard from every angle before anyone cleans it up. Tell the manager what happened and insist on an incident report. Write down the names and phone numbers of anyone who saw you fall. Ask about surveillance cameras. Most Tampa businesses record over their footage within 72 hours. If you don’t request it fast, it’s gone. A slip and fall attorney Tampa residents hire can send preservation letters immediately to secure that footage. Get to a doctor the same day, even if the pain feels manageable. Medical records connecting your injuries to the fall are the backbone of your case. Keep every receipt, every pay stub showing missed work. Once your attorney gets involved, they will go after maintenance logs, prior complaints, and inspection records. Property owners seldom volunteer these. That’s what subpoenas are for.
Founding attorney Laura Sulisufay is a former insurance defense attorney. She built her career defending insurance companies. Now, she uses that insider knowledge against them. Our team knows exactly how adjusters value claims, where they cut corners, and what evidence forces a fair offer.
That the property owner owed you a duty of care, breached it by ignoring or failing to warn about the hazard, and that the breach directly caused your injuries. The case usually turns on whether the owner knew or should have known about the danger.
Two years from the date of the fall. Florida cut the personal injury statute of limitations in half in 2023, and claims against government entities have even shorter notice windows.
A business leasing the space, the property management company responsible for maintenance, or a government entity can all share liability depending on who controlled the hazard.
Photograph the hazard before anyone cleans it up, report it to the manager and insist on an incident report, get names of witnesses, and see a doctor the same day, even if the pain feels manageable.
Footage is often the strongest piece of evidence, but most Tampa businesses overwrite their recordings within 72 hours, so it must be formally requested almost immediately, or it’s lost.
That’s a common tactic to shrink your claim. Your case turns on whether the property owner owed you a duty of care, breached it by failing to fix or warn about the danger, and whether that breach caused your injuries—especially whether they knew or should have known about the hazard. Strong evidence and prompt legal action can dismantle “blame the victim” scripts.
Immediately. Evidence disappears fast. Businesses often overwrite surveillance footage within 72 hours, hazards get cleaned or repaired, and memories fade. Florida also has a two-year statute of limitations (even shorter notice windows for government claims). Acting quickly helps secure footage, witness information, and documents that can make or break your case.
Suli Law Group exists to protect injured people and policyholders at their most vulnerable moments — combining insider knowledge of the insurance industry, relentless preparation, and direct attorney access with the compassion, integrity, and genuine care every client deserves. We pursue justice and accountability with strategy, precision, and heart.
Available 24/7 · No obligation · When you call, you talk to an attorney
