What evidence should I save right away after a Michigan slip and fall?

Save photos, videos, witness names, incident-report details, shoes, clothing, receipts, medical records, camera locations and any messages with the property owner, manager, landlord, insurer or business. These items can help show what the hazard looked like before the condition changed.

Should I ask the business, landlord or property manager for an incident report?

Yes. Ask that an incident report be created and ask for a copy. If you do not receive one, write down who took the report, what was recorded, the date and time, the exact location and whether witnesses, photos, video or employee statements were mentioned.

How fast can surveillance footage disappear after a slip and fall?

Video can be overwritten quickly, depending on the property and camera system. Write down visible camera locations and contact Michigan Legal Center for help requesting preservation of relevant video, incident reports, inspection logs, cleanup records and maintenance records.

Can I still have a claim if there is no video of the fall?

Yes, if other evidence supports the claim. Video can help, but it is not the only evidence. Photos, witness statements, incident reports, medical records, inspection logs, cleanup records, repair history, prior complaints, lighting, weather and property-control records may still support review.

Why do my shoes and clothing matter after a fall?

Shoes and clothing may answer arguments about traction, footwear, liquid, salt, oil, mud, torn fabric or how the fall happened. Photograph them and keep them in a safe place until an attorney reviews whether they matter.

What records can show whether the property owner knew about the hazard?

Inspection logs, sweep logs, cleanup records, maintenance records, repair records, prior complaints, prior fall reports, employee schedules, incident reports and surveillance footage may help show notice, control, timing and reasonable care. The useful records depend on where the fall happened and what caused it.

Michigan Slip and Fall Evidence: What to Save

What evidence should you save right away after a Michigan slip and fall?

Dealing with an injury after a fall is already bad enough, but if you want your personal injury case to succeed, you also need to be thinking about how to set yourself up for success in court and having the right evidence may be the difference between succeding or failing. Conditions can change quickly, so be sure to collect the evidence you need before it gets cleaned, fixed, deleted or otherwise is no longer available and contact Michigan Legal Center about requesting evidence you cannot obtain yourself.

What should you gather at the scene?

Start with evidence you can safely and legally preserve without trespassing. You do not need to prove the whole case at the scene. Just protect the details that show how the injury was caused, where it happened, who saw it, whether the property owner or business knew and what the property looked like.

A useful first checklist includes:

photos and video of the exact hazard
wider photos showing the walkway, aisle, stairs, entrance, parking lot or surrounding area
warning signs, cones, mats, barriers, lighting, drainage, snow, ice, liquid, debris or uneven flooring
names and phone numbers for witnesses
the name or job title of the manager, employee, landlord, security officer or property representative you spoke with
incident-report details and whether you were given a copy
shoes and clothing worn during the fall
receipts, appointment records, parking records or other proof you were there
medical records, discharge papers and injury photos
visible camera locations
follow-up texts, emails, claim numbers or insurer letters

If you have only some of these items, preserve those. Michigan Legal Center can review what else may need to be requested before it is lost.

What photos, videos and scene details should you document?

Take a variety of photos or videos from different angles and distances to capture the whole scene and ensure that all relevant details are shown. Helpful photos and videos may include:

the hazard, which may be a spill, ice, snow, water, mat, stair, handrail, threshold, pothole, curb, uneven surface, debris or broken flooring
the direction the injured person was walking
lighting, shadows, glare, blocked sightlines or poor visibility
the absence or placement of warning signs
nearby displays, carts, boxes, rugs, cords, merchandise or obstacles
the exact aisle, entrance, stairwell, parking space, sidewalk panel, apartment hallway or building area
measurements of a height difference, broken stair, gap, slope or uneven surface when it is safe to measure
weather conditions, including snow, ice, rain, refreeze or standing water
visible injuries as they develop

Don’t disturb the hazard or place yourself in danger to get a better picture. If you cannot take photos yourself, ask someone with you to document the scene and write down who took the photos. Photos with timestamps or other methods of showing the exact time help because conditions can change.

Should you report the fall and ask for an incident report?

Yes. If your health allows it, report the incident to an employee, manager or owner of the business or property and ask them to create an incident report and ask for a copy.

If the report does not tell your side accurately, or if you are not given a copy, make your own notes while the details are fresh. Keep track of:

who took the report
that person's job title
the date and time
the exact location listed
how the hazard was described
whether witnesses were named
whether an employee, manager or security person made any statements
whether photos or video were taken
whether the report left out something important

Keep the report factual and straightforward. Describe the injury, how it was caused and what you saw. Do not guess how long the hazard was there, who caused it or whether anyone is at fault.

Why should you keep shoes, clothing, receipts and medical records?

Your shoes and clothing can matter because property owners and insurers may argue that a fall was caused by something else such as footwear, water, oil, food, mud, torn fabric, lighting or distraction.

Photograph the shoes and clothing and avoid cleaning or repairing them. Keep them in a safe place and in the same condition until an attorney can review their importance.

Location records may help show that you were at the location at the time of the fall. This may require a purchase/parking receipt, appointment confirmation, text message, delivery record, photo timestamp, ride-share record or calendar entry.

Medical records matter for a different reason. They can help connect the fall to your injuries and show when symptoms were first reported. This can be important if an insurance company argues that your injuries came from a previous incident or condition. Keep emergency room papers, urgent care notes, imaging records, therapy referrals, discharge instructions, bills, work restrictions and photos of visible injuries.

What witness, employee, video and property records may need preservation?

Witness names can be difficult to get after a fall, especially in a private business or apartment building. If you can do so safely, collect names, phone numbers and a short note about what each person saw if they are willing to provide it. A witness may have seen the hazard before the fall, heard an employee comment about it or noticed cleanup after you were hurt.

Also write down the names or descriptions of employees, managers, security officers, maintenance workers, snow-removal workers or contractors who were present. If a hazard was cleaned, fixed, removed or marked with a sign after the fall, the identity of the person who fixed it may be important to the claim.

A Michigan Legal Center attorney can help you send a preservation letter asking the property owner, business, landlord, manager, insurer or contractor to preserve evidence such as:

surveillance video and camera location information
incident reports
employee statements
inspection logs and sweep logs
cleanup records
maintenance records
repair records
snow, salting or weather records
prior complaints or prior fall reports
employee schedules
leases, contracts or records showing who controlled the area

A preservation letter does not decide liability and does not guarantee that every record will be produced. It is an early step to reduce the risk that relevant video or documents are lost before the claim can be evaluated.

What if the hazard was cleaned, repaired, salted, moved or changed?

Hazard conditions being fixed, removed or changed does not automatically end a slip and fall case, but it can make other forms of evidence more important.

If the hazard changed before you could document it, write down what changed and when you noticed the change. Messages, photos, receipts, medical records and witness names may all be useful.

If any cameras captured the area before, during or after the fall, they may be used as evidence as well.

If no video exists, other evidence may still help show what happened.

How do Michigan fault, deadline, public-property and apartment rules affect evidence?

Without necessary evidence, an injured person may have trouble responding to arguments from property owners and insurers. They may claim that the hazard was visible, the property owner acted reasonably, the hazard appeared too recently or the injured person shares fault.

The Michigan Supreme Court's decision in Kandil-Elsayed v F & E Oil, Inc changed how cases treat open-and-obvious hazards. A hazard being plainly visible may be relevant but it does not automatically mean the property owner is not liable. Courts now consider the open and obvious nature of a hazard as part of breach and comparative fault, not as part of duty.

That makes evidence about visibility, lighting, warnings, path choice, footwear, weather and maintenance especially important.

Michigan comparative-fault law can also affect damages. Under MCL 600.2959, damages can be reduced by a person's percentage of comparative fault, and compensation for pain and suffering and other noneconomic losses is unavailable if the injured person's fault is greater than 50%.

Timing also matters. There is a general three-year limitations period for many Michigan injury claims, with exceptions. But a filing deadline is not an evidence-preservation deadline. Video, cleanup records, witnesses and scene conditions can disappear much earlier.

Public-property falls need fast attorney review. A fall involving a public sidewalk, road or highway defect may involve MCL 691.1404 depending on who is in charge of maintaining an area and what the defect is. A fall involving a dangerous or defective public building may involve MCL 691.1406. When these notice provisions apply, notice generally must be served within 120 days and identify the exact location and nature of the defect, the injury and known witnesses. An ordinary incident report or preservation request does not necessarily satisfy these requirements. Do not rely on a general injury deadline if a government property, school, municipal parking area, public building or public sidewalk may be involved.

Apartment and rental-property falls can raise different evidence questions. MCL 554.139 generally requires residential landlords to keep rented premises and common areas fit for their intended use and to keep the rented premises in reasonable repair. For an apartment hallway, stairwell, entrance, parking lot, laundry room or common walkway, useful evidence may include lease terms, repair requests, complaints, maintenance records, property-management communications and proof of who controlled the area.

Michigan Legal Center handles Michigan slip and fall claims and broader premises liability claims. If your fall involved ice or snow, the weather-specific details should be reviewed separately, but the evidence checklist still applies. Michigan Legal Center can help protect your claim from lost evidence by requesting preservation of video and records and reviewing who controlled the property.