If you fell at a shopping center and got injured, would you file an insurance claim with the shopping center?

My mom fell at a shopping center last week and broke her face. I don't think the shopping center was negligent. My mom hasn't gotten the medical bills yet but I think they will be high. She will most likely need some plastic surgery.

Would you file an insurance claim with the shopping center?

They should have general liability insurance that covers falls. DH thinks she should not. I think it will just be paperwork. We are not trying to sue the shopping center.

Re: If you fell at a shopping center and got injured, would you file an insurance claim with the shopping center?

If it was truly an accident and there was no negligence on the part of the shopping center, no, I would not. I personally feel more people need to accept responsibility when accidents happen. There doesn't always have to be someone to blame.

I hope your mom gets well soon.

Re: If you fell at a shopping center and got injured, would you file an insurance claim with the shopping center?

Did the shopping center urge you to do so? I don't see the harm honestly... you are not trying to sue, not pointing any fingers... but that's what insurance is for- accidents like this. Hope your mom is okay!

Message edited 6/17/2013 2:10:06 PM.

Re: If you fell at a shopping center and got injured, would you file an insurance claim with the shopping center?

Re: If you fell at a shopping center and got injured, would you file an insurance claim with the shopping center?

Honestly you can't tell if they are negligent or not- there might be some issue that needs to be fixed and this could bring light to it. Or they could find that they had no wrong doing and say you get nothing. I'd file and let the insurance company figure it out

Re: If you fell at a shopping center and got injured, would you file an insurance claim with the shopping center?

Does she have her own medical insurance? They might go after the carrier for the shopping center so you might want to just let them know she had a fall and file some sort of incident report.

Re: If you fell at a shopping center and got injured, would you file an insurance claim with the shopping center?

Re: If you fell at a shopping center and got injured, would you file an insurance claim with the shopping center?

Re: If you fell at a shopping center and got injured, would you file an insurance claim with the shopping center?

Re: If you fell at a shopping center and got injured, would you file an insurance claim with the shopping center?

Re: If you fell at a shopping center and got injured, would you file an insurance claim with the shopping center?

Yes I would. Only because my mom did fall in a shopping center & later on had to have knee surgery.

I'd absolutely protect my rights to file a lawsuit - particularly if there were previous claims & they hadn't fixed it.

In my mom's case, the shopping center was found negligent & the multiple complaints about the walkway came up in discovery. They settled.

Message edited 6/17/2013 2:24:04 PM.

Re: If you fell at a shopping center and got injured, would you file an insurance claim with the shopping center?

Re: If you fell at a shopping center and got injured, would you file an insurance claim with the shopping center?

I slipped and cracked my knee on a wet floor that had no sign. I had a ton of medical bills, and nothing came of filing out reports with the store. Granted I was 20 and didnt know how to handle things, but just wanted to give a heads up that it may be wasted work for u.

Re: If you fell at a shopping center and got injured, would you file an insurance claim with the shopping center?

Yes, I would file a claim... you never know what can happen down the road related to her fall. Did she file some type of report when it happened? I think another component would be proving that it actually happened in the shopping center (not saying it didn't, but you KWIM).

Re: If you fell at a shopping center and got injured, would you file an insurance claim with the shopping center?

I would definitely submit a claim to the shopping center. Not to be litigious, but to protect your mother's rights IN CASE there are some things that aren't covered. In addition, there could be facts you aren't aware of - i.e., previous incidents at the shopping center, etc.

My friend fell in a parking lot and broke her elbow. She filed a claim with the shopping center. She needed multiple surgeries including the insertion of a pin in her elbow. The shopping center's insurance covered all of her out of pocket expenses (what her insurance didn't cover). She was happy with that outcome.

She later found out that 3 weeks later, an elderly woman fell in the same parking lot and broke her hip. This woman sued and was successful in doing so because by my friend filing a claim with the shopping center, they were put on notice that there was an issue with their parking lot.

Re: If you fell at a shopping center and got injured, would you file an insurance claim with the shopping center?

Re: If you fell at a shopping center and got injured, would you file an insurance claim with the shopping center?

I think a really big part of this story is telling us HOW your mother fell?

But ultimately you should speak an attorney to know what your options are, rather than just on LIF. Here you will get moral answers vs. legal answers.

Re: If you fell at a shopping center and got injured, would you file an insurance claim with the shopping center?

I'd be more concerned that your mother fell hard enough to land on her face and break the bones.
Usually when people fall, they put their hands out. Natural instinct.
Is is possible that she blacked out for a bit ?

Re: If you fell at a shopping center and got injured, would you file an insurance claim with the shopping center?

Yes she should. That is why they have insurance and it will protect her later on.

Re: If you fell at a shopping center and got injured, would you file an insurance claim with the shopping center?

Here insurance might even if she doesn't. I fell in a parking lot, tripped over a bright yellow curb, total stupidity on my end. I needed stiches, temporary braces, I think the bill came to something like 25K. I filled out the reports at the hospital explaining how it happened and then I got a follow up letter from my insurance company asking me for the name and address of the place that it happened at. I don't think the choice is entirely hers.

If you fell at a shopping center and got injured, would you file an insurance claim with the shopping center?

my mom fell in a food store. a refrigerator unit by the checkout was leasking and she fell and needed 4 surgeries because of it. Her medical bills were astronomical, even with two insurances. She filed a report at the store to cover medical bills. because they couldn't prove three liquid was down for more than 30 min, she only received enough to cover 30% of med bills

Re: If you fell at a shopping center and got injured, would you file an insurance claim with the shopping center?

Re: If you fell at a shopping center and got injured, would you file an insurance claim with the shopping center?

Re: If you fell at a shopping center and got injured, would you file an insurance claim with the shopping center?

big pothole in sidewalk, slippery area with no warning sign - yes, otherwise no....filing they are just going to spend time investigating to determine negligence...

the harm is that investigating the claims takes money(for insurance company employees) regardless of if they pay out... which results in premium increases, which ultimately results in higher prices..

Message edited 6/17/2013 6:34:19 PM.

If you fell at a shopping center and got injured, would you file an insurance claim with the shopping center?

Medicare will likely be looking to subrogate the claims and may deny the bills initially. IMO, from a billing standpoint, you should still file a claim with the insurer, since even if they deny the claim, Medicare will step in to pay but it could make the process smoother. What usually cases the problem is when Medicare finds out what happened, they usually require that she file with the other insurance first. Filing a claim doesn't automatically mean they will pay, it's part of the subrogation process to determine fault and responsibility for the bills. Medicare and most other insurers require providers to submit the bill to the other insurers if there is one.