Falls are among the most common workplace injuries, and they can be among the most serious. A slip on a wet floor or a misstep on a staircase can mean a fractured wrist, a torn rotator cuff, a herniated disc or a head injury. You might assume that a fall at work is automatically covered by workers’ compensation. In Illinois, that is often true, but not always. Insurance companies frequently deny fall claims by arguing that you “just tripped” and that the fall had nothing to do with your job.
Whether a fall at work is covered depends on what caused it. Here is how Illinois courts decide that question, which fall situations are usually covered, and what you can do to protect your claim.
When Is a Fall at Work Covered in Illinois?
Under the Illinois Workers’ Compensation Act, an injury is covered when it arises out of and in the course of your employment. “In the course of” refers to time and place: you were working, or doing something reasonably connected to work, when you fell. “Arising out of” is where most fall disputes happen. It asks whether something about your job caused or contributed to the fall. Learn more about what counts as a work-related injury.
In McAllister v. Illinois Workers’ Compensation Commission, 2020 IL 124848, the Illinois Supreme Court explained that every workplace injury falls into one of three categories of risk.
Employment-related risks are distinctly connected to your job. They include acts your employer told you to do, acts you had a legal duty to perform, and acts your employer might reasonably expect you to do as part of your work. In McAllister, a sous chef injured his knee standing up after kneeling to search a walk-in cooler for a misplaced pan. The Court held the injury was covered because searching the cooler was part of his job. It did not matter that kneeling and standing are everyday movements. The Court also overruled an earlier line of cases to the extent they required workers to prove greater exposure to common bodily movements than the general public, for injuries arising from employment-related acts. Read more about injuries from ordinary activities.
Personal risks come from the worker, not the job. A fall caused entirely by a personal medical condition, such as a fainting spell or a seizure, is often called an “idiopathic” fall.
Neutral risks have no particular employment or personal character. Weather, ordinary stairs and level floors are common examples. A fall from a neutral risk is covered when your job exposed you to that risk to a greater degree than the general public. That greater exposure can be qualitative, such as having to carry boxes down the stairs, or quantitative, such as using the stairs many times a day.
Common Slip, Trip and Fall Situations at Work
Wet floors, spills and debris. A fall caused by a hazard in the workplace, such as a spill, loose cords, cluttered aisles, damaged flooring or poor lighting, is usually treated as an employment risk. The condition of the premises is part of the job. In Springfield Urban League v. Illinois Workers’ Compensation Commission, 2013 IL App (4th) 120219WC, a fall was found compensable because a bunched-up floor mat created a dangerous condition in an area employees used to enter and leave the building.
Stairs, ladders and loading docks. A fall from a ladder, scaffold or loading dock is typically covered because the job put you there. A fall on ordinary stairs is not automatically covered or excluded. The circumstances matter: what you were doing, why you were using the stairs, their condition, and whether your work increased the risk. If you were using the stairs to do something distinctly connected to your duties, the fact that walking down stairs is an everyday movement does not by itself make the risk neutral. Where the stairs present only the same risk everyone faces, the claim is stronger when they were defective, wet or poorly lit, had a missing or broken handrail, or when you were carrying something or hurrying for work. In Village of Villa Park v. Illinois Workers’ Compensation Commission, 2013 IL App (2d) 130038WC, the court upheld benefits for a back injury sustained when an employee’s previously injured knee gave way on stairs. His job required repeated stair use, and the employer knew about his knee injury.
Ice, snow and rain. Insurers often argue that weather is a risk everyone faces. A slip on ice or snow in a parking lot or walkway your employer owns, controls, maintains or designates for employees is often treated the same as a hazard on the workplace floor. In Mores-Harvey v. Industrial Commission, 345 Ill. App. 3d 1034 (3d Dist. 2004), a restaurant worker who slipped on ice in the employee parking area designated by her employer was awarded benefits. Ordinary rain-wet pavement, without more, has been treated as a neutral risk. In Dukich v. Illinois Workers’ Compensation Commission, 2017 IL App (2d) 160351WC, the Appellate Court, Workers’ Compensation Commission Division, upheld the denial of a claim by a school clerk who slipped on a rain-wet outdoor ramp while walking toward her car to leave for lunch. The court found no defect in the surface, no employer control over her route and nothing about her job that increased her exposure. Rain combined with a defective surface or a work-related reason for added risk may lead to a different result.
Parking lots and walkways. A fall in an employer-owned or employer-controlled parking lot, or on the only route the employer provides into the building, may be covered even before you clock in. See our post on commuting and parking lot injuries.
Idiopathic and “unexplained” falls. These are two different things. An idiopathic fall is caused by something personal to you, such as a seizure or a fainting spell. It is usually not covered unless the work conditions increased the dangerous effects of the fall, such as working at a height, near machinery or in hazardous surroundings. In City of Bridgeport v. Illinois Workers’ Compensation Commission, 2015 IL App (5th) 140532WC, benefits were awarded to the family of a meter reader who had a seizure and fell into standing floodwater at a flooded, low-lying meter site her job required her to visit. An unexplained fall, where the cause is not known, can be covered if the evidence supports a reasonable inference that a work condition caused it, such as an uneven floor or fumes. Speculation is not enough.
What to Do After a Fall at Work
Because fall claims often turn on what caused the fall, the evidence you gather in the first few days can decide the case.
Report the fall promptly. Section 6(c) of the Act requires notice to your employer as soon as practicable, and no later than 45 days after the accident. Notice may be oral or written, but a written report gives you a record. Describe what you observed and what you were doing. If you do not know what caused the fall, say so rather than guessing. Reporting the accident to your employer is not the same as filing a claim with the Commission.
Document the conditions and preserve video. If you can, photograph the floor, stairs, lighting or weather conditions before anything is cleaned up or repaired. Write down the names of coworkers who saw the fall or the hazard. If the area is covered by security cameras, ask your employer in writing to preserve the footage right away, because many systems record over video within days or weeks.
Get medical care and give an accurate history. Tell every provider that the fall happened at work and describe how it happened as best you remember. Report any dizziness, fainting or other symptoms truthfully. Separate what you saw from what you assume. An accurate, specific history is the strongest foundation for a claim.
Consider legal advice before a recorded statement. The insurance adjuster may ask you to describe the fall on a recorded call. Give an accurate account of what you remember. If you do not know why you fell, do not guess. Witnesses, photographs and video may help establish what happened. You may speak with an attorney before giving a recorded statement.
If Your Fall Claim Has Been Denied
A denial is not the final word. Whether a fall claim succeeds depends on what happened, what your work required and what the evidence shows about the floor, the stairs, the weather or your duties. Under McAllister, an injury arising from an employment-related act is not excluded simply because it involves an everyday movement such as bending, turning or standing up. The evidence must still establish the connection between the employment and the injury. If you are not receiving benefits, you can file a claim with the Illinois Workers’ Compensation Commission and ask an arbitrator to decide. Section 6(d) generally gives you 3 years from the accident, or 2 years from the last payment of compensation, whichever is later.
If a third party, such as a property owner or contractor, created the hazard that caused your fall, you may also have a separate personal injury claim in addition to workers’ compensation.
If you were hurt in a fall at work and the insurance company is questioning your claim, the attorneys at The Law Offices of Millon & Peskin, Ltd. can help you understand your rights. We represent injured workers throughout the Chicagoland area, including DuPage, Cook, Will, Kane and Lake counties, from our offices in Wheaton and Rosemont, and we serve clients in English and Spanish. Consultations are free, and we charge a fee only if you recover compensation. Call 630-260-1130 or learn more about how we help injured workers with workers’ compensation claims.