Get checked by a medical professional, report the fall to security or a manager, get the incident report number, photograph the hazard before it's cleaned up, and send a written request to preserve the surveillance video within days. That last step is the one most people miss. Nevada's gaming rules only require casinos to keep their required camera footage for 7 days, so the video that proves what happened can be gone within a week.
Here's what to do after a slip and fall accident in Las Vegas, in the order it matters.
What Should You Do in the First Hour After a Slip and Fall?
The first hour sets up everything that follows. Casino and resort properties have security teams trained to document falls quickly, and their version of events gets written down whether yours does or not.
Should you get medical help even if you feel okay?
Yes. Adrenaline hides a lot, and head injuries are easy to underestimate. Mayo Clinic notes some concussion symptoms can be delayed by hours or days, including memory problems, light sensitivity, and sleep changes.
Go to the emergency room right away for any of the CDC's concussion danger signs, like a worsening headache, repeated vomiting, slurred speech, or one pupil larger than the other. Older visitors should take hip and wrist pain seriously too. The CDC counts about 300,000 hip fracture hospitalizations each year from older adult falls.
Should you fill out an incident report?
Yes. Ask security or a manager to take a report before you leave, then write down the report number, the date and time, and the name of the employee who took it. Most properties won't hand you a copy on the spot, and many only produce their internal reports once a lawsuit is filed.
Keep your statement short and factual: where you were, what you slipped on, and what hurts. Don't guess about how long the hazard was there, don't apologize, and don't say "I'm fine" if you're not sure yet.
What should you photograph before you leave?
Take more photos than you think you need. The hazard itself matters most, but the details around it are what show whether the property should have caught it.
- The spill, debris, broken tile, or wet surface, up close and from a distance
- Whether there was a warning sign or cone, and where it was placed
- Lighting, sightlines, and any nearby drink station, pool, or ice machine
- Ceiling cameras pointed at the area (these tell your lawyer what footage should exist)
- Your shoes and any wet or stained clothing
- Your injuries, that day and over the following week
- Your room key, players card, or receipt showing you were there
- Get medical attention: Watch for worsening headache, vomiting, or hip and wrist pain
- Report the fall on site: Security or a manager, before you leave the property
- Write down the report number: Plus the date, time, and the employee who took it
- Photograph the hazard: Close up and wide, before it gets cleaned up
- Photograph the cameras: Ceiling domes show what footage should exist
- Collect witness contacts: Tourists go home fast, so get a phone number
- Keep your shoes and clothes: Bag them and store them as they are
- Send a preservation request: In writing, within a day or two
Who should you get contact information from?
Any guest who saw you fall or noticed the hazard beforehand. Get a name and a phone number at minimum, since tourists head home within days and become very hard to find. Note the names of employees who responded too, and whether anyone mentioned the spill being there earlier.
How Long Do Las Vegas Casinos Keep Surveillance Footage?
Shorter than most people assume. Under the Nevada Gaming Control Board's surveillance standards, recordings from required casino cameras must be kept for at least 7 days until April 3, 2027, and 15 days after that. Recordings of security detentions and questioning must be kept for 30 days.
The bigger catch is what those rules don't cover. The required cameras are mostly the gaming floor, tables, slots, and cage. A pool deck, hotel hallway, restaurant, or parking garage may have cameras with no state minimum at all, so the property's own policy decides how long that video lives.
| Where You Fell | Minimum Retention Required by Nevada | What That Means |
|---|---|---|
| Casino gaming floor (required cameras) | 7 days (15 days from April 3, 2027) | Act within the first week |
| Casino security office detention or questioning | 30 days | Longer, but only for that footage |
| Club venues on casino property | 15 days (30 for security interviews and medical evaluations) | Ask about both |
| Hallways, pools, garages, restaurants | No gaming rule sets a minimum | Could be overwritten in days |
| Off-Strip retail or grocery store | No Nevada retention rule | Depends entirely on store policy |
| Day | Title | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Day 0 | The fall | Report it, photograph it, get the report number |
| Days 1 to 2 | Preservation request | Written notice to risk management or legal |
| Day 7 | Casino minimum | Required gaming cameras, through April 2, 2027 |
| Day 15 | New minimum | Required cameras from April 3, 2027, and club venues |
| Day 30 | Security footage | Detentions and security questioning |
How do you stop the video from being erased?
Send a written preservation request as soon as you can, ideally within a day or two. Email it to the property's risk management or legal department and mail a copy by certified mail. It should list the date, time, and exact location of your fall, and ask the property to preserve:
- All video of the area from a few hours before the fall through the response afterward
- The incident report and any photos or statements security took
- Floor inspection, sweep, and cleaning logs for that area
- Maintenance records and prior incident reports for the same spot
Why does a preservation request matter so much in Nevada?
Because it changes who pays for missing evidence. In Bass-Davis v. Davis, a woman slipped on a freshly mopped floor in a Nevada convenience store, and her sister asked for the surveillance tape within a week. The tape was later lost, and the Nevada Supreme Court held that a jury could be told to infer that negligently lost evidence would have been unfavorable to the side that lost it.
If evidence is destroyed on purpose, NRS 47.250 goes further and creates a presumption that the suppressed evidence would have been adverse. Nevada courts treat a party as responsible for preserving evidence it knows or should know is relevant to anticipated litigation, as the Clark County Bar's summary of MDB Trucking explains. Your written request is what removes any doubt that the property knew.
What Should You Avoid After a Slip and Fall in Las Vegas?
A few common moves can shrink a strong claim. Most of them happen in the first few days, when you're sore, busy, or trying to salvage a trip.
| Topic | Do | Don't |
|---|---|---|
| Incident report | Give a short, factual account and get the report number | Guess about the hazard, apologize, or say "I'm fine" |
| Medical care | Get checked the same day and follow up | Wait to see if the pain goes away on its own |
| Evidence | Photograph the hazard, cameras, shoes, and injuries | Throw out or wash the shoes and clothes you wore |
| Surveillance video | Send a written preservation request within days | Assume the property will keep it without being asked |
| Insurance adjuster | Ask for questions in writing | Give a recorded statement before you know your injuries |
| Documents | Read everything before signing | Sign anything that mentions releasing claims |
| Social media | Stay off it until the claim is resolved | Post trip photos that suggest you weren't hurt |
Should you give a recorded statement to the property's insurer?
You don't have to, and it's usually better to wait. A recorded statement taken while you're still figuring out your injuries locks in details before you have medical answers. You can politely decline and ask the adjuster to send questions in writing.
Does it matter what you post online?
Yes. Insurers look at social media, and a pool photo from day three of your trip can be used to argue you weren't really hurt. Stay off it until your claim is resolved, and keep your shoes and clothing from the fall in a bag somewhere safe.
What If You Fell at Work, on a Sidewalk, or Off the Strip?
The steps above still apply, but the rules around them change.
If you slipped on the job, you're likely in the workers' compensation system instead. Nevada requires written notice to your employer within 7 days under NRS 616C.015, and the process for a workplace injury claim in Las Vegas runs on its own deadlines.
A fall on a public sidewalk can point to the city, Clark County, or the state, which triggers a separate government claims process. And off-Strip stores aren't covered by gaming surveillance rules at all, so that preservation request matters even more. For resort-specific issues like layered ownership and security teams, see this guide to Las Vegas hotel and casino injuries.
How Long Do You Have to File a Slip and Fall Claim in Nevada?
Two years from the date of the fall under Nevada's statute of limitations, NRS 11.190. Fault matters too. Under Nevada's comparative negligence rule, your recovery drops by your share of fault and disappears at 51%, which is why properties often argue you were distracted, drinking, or wearing the wrong shoes.
Keep every medical bill, receipt, and travel record in one place. Here's a practical rundown of what records to keep after your case closes, too.
How Can Meesha Moulton Law Help After a Fall on the Strip?
Timing is the whole game in a Las Vegas fall case. Meesha Moulton Law sends formal preservation letters to the property and any maintenance company within days, before surveillance video, sweep logs, and incident reports disappear.
If you or someone you're traveling with was hurt, talk to a Las Vegas slip and fall lawyer or request a free consultation. You don't need to live in Nevada to bring a claim for a fall that happened here.
Frequently Asked Questions About What to Do After a Slip and Fall
Should I fill out an incident report after a slip and fall?
Yes. An incident report creates a record that the fall happened on the property, on a specific date, at a specific spot. Ask for the report number and the name of the employee who took it, since you may not get a copy until later. Keep your account short and factual, and don't speculate about fault.
How long do stores keep camera footage?
It depends on the store. Nevada has no general retention rule for retail stores, so policies vary and some systems overwrite footage within days or weeks. Casinos must keep required gaming cameras for at least 7 days, rising to 15 days in April 2027. The safest move is a written preservation request as soon as possible.
Can I get a copy of the casino's surveillance video?
Usually not right away. Properties rarely hand over video voluntarily, and it often comes out only through the formal discovery process once a lawsuit is filed. That's why the preservation request matters: it keeps the footage in existence until it can be requested properly.
What happens if you slip and fall in a store?
Report it to a manager, get the incident report number, photograph the hazard, and collect witness contacts before leaving. Get medical care the same day if anything hurts. Whether the store is responsible depends on whether it knew or should have known about the hazard and failed to fix it or warn you.
How long after a slip and fall can you sue in Nevada?
Nevada generally gives you two years from the date of the fall to file an injury lawsuit. Claims involving government property follow a separate process with their own requirements. Waiting close to the deadline is risky because the evidence that proves the claim usually disappears much sooner.
Do I need a lawyer for a slip and fall in Las Vegas?
Not always, but premises claims are evidence-heavy, and casinos and national retailers defend them hard. If you were hurt badly enough to need ongoing treatment, a lawyer can send preservation letters immediately and use discovery to get video and inspection logs the property won't share voluntarily. The consultation is free for personal injury matters.
