If you are a small business owner who has just been accused of negligence causing someone to fall in your establishment, and you are positive the accuser is falsifying their claim, you will most likely want to clear your name of any wrongdoing. Being falsely accused can still lead to you needing to pay for medical expenses and loss of wages of the person pretending to have fallen if you do not take steps to prove your innocence. Here are some steps you can take to prove you were not at fault.
Check For Witnesses
If you had others in your establishment at the time the person claims to have fallen, one of them may have noticed something suspicious about the way the person was acting beforehand. To find out who was on the premises, check credit card receipts and call each person to see if they noticed anything unusual regarding the fall. Find out if these people were with others who had not made a purchase so you can check with them. Ask each employee about their observations at that time as well.
Look At Surveillance
If you have hidden video cameras in your establishment, you may have picked up something on the footage to help prove you are not at fault. Check footage for several weeks prior to the incident to see if the person claiming to have fallen was in the building at an earlier time. They may have been checking out the interior to find a good place to stage a fall. There may also be footage of them putting something in the way to make it appear the object was the cause of the fall.
Check with neighboring businesses to see if they have had any incidents occur on their properties. The perpetrator may be using the same staged act at other businesses. These businesses may also have footage in their establishments of the person looking for a good place to stage a fall.
Check With Maintenance
Many businesses have a maintenance department who handles the cleanup and repair of areas within their building. Check to see if there is documentation regarding the floors where the incident had taken place. There may be proof that a sign had been placed alerting people the floor was not to be walked on due to recent cleaning or the aisle may have been blocked off for another reason, proving the customer was at fault.
Hire Some Help
Have an attorney from a firm like Swartz & Swartz P.C. go through all possible scenarios to help you prove the person is pretending to be hurt. Your lawyer will be able to find out what injuries the person claims to have and may be able to prove they are faking these by having a private investigator follow them as they go about their day.
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