New Jersey Shopping Cart Accident & Injury Lawyers

a shopping cart in the aisle of a supermarket

Most of the time, pushing a shopping cart around at the store is second nature. We trust that a trip through the many aisles of a supermarket will be safe and free from harm, and nothing bad will happen while we use a shopping cart. This is because owners of the supermarket, by law, have a legal obligation to keep you, as their customers, safe from harm. However, sometimes accidents happen involving shopping carts when these stores fail to provide a safe environment. Accidents while pushing a shopping cart are more common than you might think, and they can result in serious injuries with long-lasting effects. 

If you or someone close to you suffered injuries in a shopping cart accident in New Jersey, do not hesitate to consult with an experienced personal injury lawyer. You may be entitled to money for your medical bills, pain, suffering, and more. A skilled attorney can evaluate the evidence available in your case, evaluate the governing law, and build a strong legal claim on your behalf. 

At Davis, Saperstein & Salomon, P.C., we take the rights of injury victims seriously. No matter the circumstances of their case, we make sure each of our clients receives the compassionate, individualized attention they deserve. Our team of knowledgeable personal injury lawyers is committed to helping you demand the money and accountability you deserve. Contact us today to learn more in a free legal case review.

Why Choose Davis, Saperstein & Salomon, P.C.?

If you’re looking for help after a shopping cart accident caused an injury, you’ve come to the right place. We know how to win cases involving accidents at malls, department stores, and grocery stores. Here are just a few of our successful results:

  • We obtained a $7 million settlement for a Trader Joe’s worker. She was on her way to return a shopping cart when she was struck by a car, sending her upper body through the store window and pinning her leg to the shopping cart corral. She ended up requiring a leg amputation, and we successfully held the driver accountable for the harm she caused.
  • We obtained a $500,000 settlement for a woman who slipped on a puddle of water in a Paramus, NJ, department store. She suffered meniscus tears in her knees and disc bulges in her lumbar spine. We argued that the store and the mall center were negligent in their failure to maintain a safe environment for their customers. 
  • We won a confidential settlement involving a senior citizen who was knocked to the ground by an unattended shopping cart, where the supermarket did not provide shopping cart corrals.  

We’ve been helping injured people in New York and New Jersey for more than 40 years, and our record of success speaks for itself. We’ve recovered over $1 billion for more than 35,000 individuals and families. We thoroughly investigate your case and explore every possible avenue when determining how much money you could receive in a verdict or settlement.

We know this is a challenging time, and we understand that trust is earned. That’s why we’re happy to accommodate you however we can. We’re happy to meet in person or virtually via Skype, Zoom, or FaceTime. If English is not your first language, we have Spanish speakers on-site and offer translation services for many more languages, including Korean, Polish, Italian, Albanian, and Portuguese.

Contact us today to find out if you have a case. There’s no charge for the consultation, and we only get paid if we recover money for you. 

Causes of Shopping Cart Accidents

Shopping cart accidents happen all too often in the United States. Sadly, children are some of the most common victims of these accidents. An estimated 24,000 children under 15 are injured yearly in such accidents. That number translates to 66 children per day! The most common causes of shopping cart accident injuries among children include falls from shopping carts, running into or falling over shopping carts, cart tip-overs, and entanglement accidents. Injuries to the head are the most common form of injury, with over 78 percent of children injured in shopping cart accidents sustaining head trauma. 

The statistics show that shopping cart accidents are relatively common in grocery stores, retail stores, and other shopping establishments. Some of the most common causes of shopping cart accidents include:

  • Unstable design or manufacturing defects – Poorly designed or built carts sometimes malfunction or even unexpectedly collapse.
  • Poor maintenance – Improperly maintained shopping carts can cause an accident if rust, loose parts, or worn-out wheels leave them structurally impaired.
  • Uneven surfaces – If a store has uneven flooring, large cracks, or holes in its outdoor pavement, carts are more likely to destabilize and tip over.
  • Slippery floors – Slippery or wet floors can cause a shopping cart’s wheels to lose traction. If the person controlling the cart loses control, it can run into other people or into shelves, causing loose merchandise to fall.
  • Overloading – Loading a cart with too much weight can make it top-heavy and more likely to tip over. 
  • Careless shoppers – If shoppers push or pull their shopping carts without paying attention to their surroundings, they can lose control of their carts and cause accidents. 
  • Unattended Shopping Carts – being blown by the wind or rolling within parking lots striking cars or people.
  • Lacerations – Cuts requiring stitches due to sharp edges
  • Parking Lot Potholes – commonly cause shopping carts to tip over when a wheel gets stuck in a parking lot pothole.  

Most Common Shopping Cart Injuries

Some of the most common shopping cart accident injuries include:

Who is Liable in Shopping Cart Accident Claims?

Grocery stores, retail shops, and other businesses open to the public are legally responsible for keeping their premises reasonably safe for shoppers. This responsibility includes ensuring their shopping carts, floors, and parking areas are in good condition and free of hazards. Therefore, if you suffer injuries in a shopping cart accident, you could hold the business or property owner liable in a premises liability claim.

When you file a premises liability claim, you must show that your injuries are a direct result of the negligence of a party that owned or controlled the property. You’ll also need to provide proof of your losses, such as medical bills and other costs you incurred due to the injury. 

You could also have a viable product liability claim if a manufacturing or design flaw in a shopping cart contributed to the accident. A shopping cart accident lawyer can review the facts of your case and identify all possible legal options.

Money Damages Available in Shopping Cart Accident Claims

An experienced injury attorney can help you seek money for both the economic and non-economic impact your injuries have on your day-to-day life. For example, you may be compensated for:

  • Medical expenses – This includes the costs of medical treatment, hospital stays, medications, rehabilitation, and any other care expenses related to your injury.
  • Lost wages – If you missed work due to your shopping cart accident injury, you could be reimbursed for the wages you would have earned. You could also seek money damages for lowered future earnings if a permanent disability impacts your ability to return to work.
  • Emotional and psychological harm – You might be entitled to money for the pain, suffering, and reduced quality of life you experience due to the injury accident. 
  • Pain, Suffering, and Disfigurement – Like any other personal injury claim, you will be entitled to economic and non-economic damages for your pain, suffering, and disfigurement.  

What Should I Do After a Shopping Cart Accident?

Taking the right steps after any personal injury can get you started on the right path towards justice. Take the following steps after a shopping cart accident:

  • Report the accident to store management as soon as possible. Be sure to provide as much detail as possible about what happened and ask for a copy of the report.
  • Document the accident scene by taking pictures of the area, taking note of nearby surveillance equipment, collecting contact information from witnesses, and gathering other relevant evidence, such as the clothing or shoes you wore when the accident occurred.
  • Seek medical attention, even if you do not think you were seriously hurt. Some injuries might not present symptoms immediately, so getting an evaluation from a medical professional is a good idea.
  • Be detailed about your explanation to the Emergency Room Staff about how your shopping cart accident occurred. 
  • Contact a premises liability lawyer. An experienced shopping cart accident lawyer can help you understand your legal rights and determine the best course of action for your case. 

Injured in a Shopping Cart Accident? Consult With an Experienced Injury Lawyer in New Jersey Today

At Davis, Saperstein & Salomon, P.C., we have over 40 years of experience advocating for the rights of personal injury victims. Over the years, our New Jersey injury law firm has successfully recovered more than $1 billion for our clients. Let us fight for you. Contact us today for a free, no-obligation case review with our experienced New Jersey injury lawyers.