From decorating to cooking, and every cherished memory in between, the holiday moments bring with them a slew of potential hazards. On Thanksgiving Day alone, there are approximately 1,700 cooking fires all across America. Turkey fryers themselves have caused as much as $9.7 million in damages over the last several years.
It doesn’t matter how well you know how to cook or use a turkey fryer. The chance for personal injury is there. Holiday decorating sends thousands to hospitals every year. Drinking and driving is another multi-million-dollar cost to America during the holiday season.
The most common types of holiday injuries are:
- Holiday decorating injuries
- Drinking and driving-related accidents
- Fires
- Food injuries or illness
With the holidays comes the risk of injury, more so than at any other time of year. Inform yourself of the personal injury risks of the holiday season. Save yourself from a lengthy time of claims, emergencies, and devastating loss.
When accidents happen, however, know that we are here for you. Accidents can be expensive and can be tragic legal nightmares. Call (864) 388-9100 to book a free consultation with McCravy Law and let us help you untangle those holiday injury wires for you.
Holiday Decorating Injuries
It is estimated that approximately 200 decorating injuries occur each day over the holidays in November and December. In 2019, six Americans died after sustaining holiday decorating injuries.
The most common decorating injuries are:
- Slip and falls
- Extension cord injuries
- Burns
In 2018, over 17 thousand Americans visited emergency rooms after a fall or decorating injury occurred. An additional 4 thousand are treated in emergency rooms for injuries related to extension cords.
Some of those extension cord injuries are slip and fall injuries that result in fractures, sprains, and lacerations. Sometimes children put them in their mouths and are injured. At other times, the extension cord is faulty.
Each of those injuries will prompt several different claims and complaints.
Be very careful during your holiday decorating or un-decorating. Never leave children unattended, and don’t do anything too strenuous alone if you don’t have to.
Holiday decorating injuries could lead to both healthcare and personal liability nightmares.
The most careful parents, grandparents, and neighbors will find accidents unavoidable. Contact a South Carolina personal injury lawyer about your decorating mishaps or slip-and-falls as soon as you can to help with the problems that follow after a holiday decorating injury.
Holiday Fire Injury
It is no news that there are risks of fire injury during the holidays. But it might surprise you to learn just how risky they are. Between 2015 and 2017, the holiday season brought approximately 100 Christmas tree fires to America and over one thousand candle fires.
Those resulted in 20 deaths, hundreds of injuries, and millions of dollars in damage. The Electrical Safety Foundation estimates that approximately 45 percent of home fires during this season result from low candle maintenance. The top three calendar days for candle fires in America are Christmas, Christmas Eve, and New Year’s Day.
Accidents happen. When there is reveling and merriment and fire, they are going to happen more often.
Fire injuries during the holidays don’t just cause human physical damage. They cause irreparable property damage as well. Keep the PS5 that Santa brought away from all burning objects during the season.
When accidents happen, we’re here to help.
Holiday Food Injury
Several food-related injuries happen during the holidays every year that have nothing to do with an open flame or turkey fryer. Food injuries could happen from poorly cooked food, allergens, or eating against a health plan, such as with diabetes.
The most common food problem during the holiday season occurs after contact with the pathogen known as Clostridium perfringens. This pathogen is a bacteria that connects with food that has been poorly cooked or left out for too long.
It is the second leading cause of food poisoning and can ruin a good Christmas holiday. Over a million cases occur in the United States every year, with most outbreaks between November and December.
Tips to avoid holiday food injury:
- Don’t keep your food out for more than two hours.
- When you refrigerate, use shallow containers that will disburse the heat in your leftovers faster.
- You don’t need to wait for food to cool before you put it in the fridge.
Everyone thinks it will never happen to them. But the easiest way to serve over the holidays is to set out an array of foods for several people. You could be held liable if the wrong person eats the wrong thing left out too long or if you don’t know the allergen or diabetic needs of your guests.
The foods most commonly associated with these bacteria are meats and poultry products. Beef roasts and stews can also attract it. Leave your turkey or beef to rest a while after taking it out of the oven, before you carve it. You don’t need more than 20 minutes or a half-hour. Doing so prevents the attraction of the bacteria from getting into the meat. It also leaves a better flavor at the end of the day.
Holiday Alcohol-Related Injury
It’s no secret that drinking and driving over the holidays is a serious problem. Most local law enforcement and drunk driving campaigns are out in full patrol between November and December. One reason is that there is generally more alcohol consumption during this time frame, even with people that don’t usually drink.
The Distilled Spirits Council of the United States estimates that a quarter of the industry’s profits of $49 billion annually are made between Thanksgiving and the New Year. That is a staggering number of drinkers, many of whom are driving.
The temptation to revel is there, even with people that are generally moderate drinkers or infrequent drinkers. During these months, with half of the nation on icy roads, drinking carries a long list of risk factors. It is estimated that approximately 300 people die annually between Christmas and New Year’s in alcohol-related car accidents. In 2016, 781 Americans lost their lives to drunk driving in December.
These accidents launch a series of legal problems from both a property loss and personal injury level. Those 300 deaths annually could result in 300 wrongful death suits alone.
Be safe. There’s nothing foolish about calling a taxi and picking your car up the next day. The excellent neighbor or family member that served you will be grateful as well.
Holiday drinking and driving injuries will cause nightmares with car insurance, hospitals, auto repair shops, and maybe even the criminal system. They are a tragedy in even the lightest of cases. Contact a South Carolina personal injury firm if this tragedy happens to you.
Book a Free Consultation With a South Carolina Personal Injury Attorney Today
In most cases, you can’t help it when there is an accident. That’s why they are called accidents. Statistics show that accidents and personal injury happen in America every holiday season. These can range from fire accidents to deadly car crashes.
Protect yourself from liability by practicing safety first. But you can’t guarantee that everybody you visit this year will. If an accident happens, don’t rush to judgment. If you think you are owed compensation, then you probably are.
Contact South Carolina personal injury attorneys at McCravy, Newlon, Sturkie, and Clardy today. We have been successfully servicing the Anderson, Greenville, Greenwood, Laurens, Saluda, and Spartanburg, South Carolina areas since 1995.
When an accident or injury happens during the holidays, you won’t know what to do. Leave it with us. Call McCravy Law at (864) 388-9100 or contact us online to book a free consultation today.
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