A step that moves under your weight can cause a sudden loss of balance. Afterward, the stair may look almost normal in a photograph taken from above. The difference between a stationary surface defect and a tread that shifts, drops, or tilts is important to describe accurately.
Obtain appropriate medical attention first. The information below can help preserve what happened without putting anyone in danger.
Describe the movement you actually experienced.
Write down your recollection while it is fresh. Were you going up or down? Which step was involved? Did the tread drop, rock, shift sideways, or tilt forward when you stepped on it? Did the movement begin before you lost your balance?
Identify your direction of travel and a consistent way to locate the step—for example, the third tread from the bottom. Note which foot was on it and whether you were holding a handrail. Describe what you felt or saw without supplying a measurement or mechanical explanation you do not know.
Photographs should identify the step and its surroundings.
- Photograph the entire stairway, including both landings and nearby entrances.
- Show the particular tread and its position in the flight.
- Capture any visible gap, separation, loose covering, broken edge, or fastening problem from a safe position.
- Include the handrails, lighting, and any obstruction relevant to what happened.
Save original files and keep an unedited copy. Record who took them, when they were taken, and whether the condition had changed since the fall.
Video may reveal movement that a still image misses.
An existing recording may show a tread moving or explain why a photograph alone is incomplete. Preserve any recording already available, along with information about its date and what it depicts.
Do not step on a suspected loose tread to test it, ask someone else to recreate the accident, remove a stair covering, or attempt a repair for evidence. Tell your attorney about the suspected movement so a safe, appropriate inspection and preservation plan can be considered.
Identify witnesses and earlier reports.
Someone may have seen the accident, observed the step move previously, or reported a problem. Preserve their names and contact details. Save your own texts, emails, repair requests, photographs, and communications with the landlord, superintendent, management company, or business.
If you remember a prior complaint, identify what was said, to whom, and approximately when. Do not assume that every owner or manager knew about the condition. Whether a responsible party created the problem or had legally sufficient notice requires evidence and legal analysis.
Tell your attorney about cameras and repairs promptly.
Building entrances, lobbies, stores, and adjoining properties may have cameras. Identify possible camera locations and the approximate time of the fall. An attorney can assess what recordings and maintenance information should be requested and preserved.
If the stairs are later repaired, tell your attorney when you learned about the work and preserve any photographs or communications already in your possession. A repair does not by itself establish liability, and evidence should be evaluated in context.
A building-code issue requires more than a photograph.
The requirements that apply to a stairway may depend on the building, its age and use, alterations, and the location of the stairs. A sloped or uneven-looking step does not, by itself, establish which code applies or prove that a violation caused the fall.
Measurements, maintenance records, witness accounts, and an expert inspection may help answer disputed questions. Deliso Law's Brooklyn stairway-accident page explains the firm's approach to investigating loose steps, uneven stairs, handrails, and related hazards.
Keep the injury and treatment information.
Tell treating providers accurately how the fall happened and which parts of your body were affected. Keep available ambulance, emergency-department, imaging, treatment, and work-absence information. Do not delay care to collect evidence.
The fact that a stair moved does not automatically establish a recoverable claim. The investigation must connect the condition to the fall, determine who may be responsible, and evaluate the injuries and other relevant circumstances.
Discuss a loose-stair fall with Deliso Law.
Joseph Deliso has represented injured people in New York for more than forty years. The firm investigates stairway falls in apartment buildings, entrances, stores, and other properties throughout Brooklyn and New York City.
You do not need to collect every record before contacting the office. Call 718-238-3100 or request a free case review. If your accident involved an outdoor walking surface, see our guide to preserving evidence after a sidewalk fall.
Attorney Advertising. This article provides general information, not legal advice for an individual case. Contacting the firm does not create an attorney-client relationship. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome.