Generally, no you do not have to give someone who you are suing a recorded statement. When you fall at any business establishment like a department store AND you believe it is their fault, you may ultimately make a bodily injury claim against the store. Thus, the store very well may forward the information about your fall to their insurance department or sometimes the larger retailers have captive risk departments (which are effectively like in-house insurance departments) to investigate your claim. From THEIR standpoint they want to investigate all of the facts and this would include taking a recorded statement of any witnesses including the injured person. Generally, if the retailer has insurance, you are making a third party claim against the insurance and thus generally, under Florida law, the retailer or their insurer would NOT have a RIGHT to take your recorded statement before litigation is begun. It is important to note that some retailers have insurance that contain medical payment provisions and in those cases you may be required to give a statement in order to claim medical payment coverage, depending on the wording of the policy. It is a good idea to speak to a lawyer after you fall and certainly before agreeing to any sort of recorded statement.
