What makes a premises liability claim different
Florida statute 768.0755 changed what a slip and fall claimant must prove. For a transitory foreign substance in a business establishment, you must show the business had actual or constructive knowledge of the hazard. Constructive knowledge means proving the condition existed long enough that the business should have found it.
In practice, most premises liability claims are won or lost on proving actual or constructive knowledge under section 768.0755, which usually means securing surveillance footage before it is recycled.
The deadline that governs your claim
Florida shortened the filing period for most negligence claims from four years to two years in March 2023. Claims that arose before that change are generally governed by the older four-year period, and some claim types run on their own clocks — wrongful death is two years from the date of death, and claims against a government entity require written pre-suit notice on a shorter, stricter timeline.
Once the period expires the claim is normally gone, however strong it was. If you are near the edge of one, that is the reason to get advice now rather than later.
Being partly at fault does not end the claim
Florida applies modified comparative negligence: your recovery is reduced by your share of fault, and if you are found more than 50% responsible you recover nothing. Medical negligence claims are excepted from that bar. This is why insurers work so hard to move fault onto the injured person, and why a recorded statement given early can be expensive later.
What you can recover
- Past and future medical treatment
- Lost wages and lost future earning capacity
- Rehabilitation, assistive equipment, and long-term care
- Pain, suffering, and loss of enjoyment of life
- Punitive damages, where the conduct was intentional or grossly negligent
On a serious claim the future figures usually dwarf the bills already incurred, and valuing them properly means projecting a lifetime of care and earnings and then defending those projections against the other side’s experts.
Other Florida injury claims we handle
- Personal Injury
- Car Accidents
- Truck & Commercial Vehicle Accidents
- Motorcycle Accidents
- Wrongful Death
- Dog Bites
- Pedestrian & Bicycle Accidents
This page is general legal information about Florida law, not legal advice about your situation, and statutes change — the filing deadline discussed above was itself amended in 2023. Reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. Speak with a Florida-licensed attorney about the rules that apply to your claim.
