Can I sue if I slip and fall at Ralphs?

By Michael Shemtoub, trial attorney, Beverly Law. Updated November 2026.

Beverly Law is not affiliated with Ralphs or The Kroger Co. The facts below come from both companies’ own sites and filings and from California Supreme Court opinions.

Ralphs is part of Kroger

Ralphs is a Southern California grocery chain owned by The Kroger Co. of Cincinnati, Ohio. Kroger’s home page lists Ralphs as its Southern California banner, and the footer of Ralphs’ own help pages reads “The Kroger Co.” (Kroger; Ralphs Help Center). Kroger says it acquired the chain in 1999, when it merged with Fred Meyer, Inc., then the owner of Ralphs, Food 4 Less and QFC (Kroger history). Kroger refers to its “Ralphs and Food4Less stores” together as part of its family of companies in Southern California (Kroger, January 2025).

Kroger’s annual report says that as of January 31, 2026 it operated 2,697 supermarkets in 35 states and the District of Columbia, under a variety of local banner names (Kroger 10-K). The same report refers to “the terminated transaction with Albertsons.” Albertsons announced in December 2024 that it was abandoning that merger after court rulings in Oregon and Washington (ABC7), so Ralphs and Vons are still owned by different companies.

Ralphs lists a general customer contact number, 800-576-4377 (1-800-KRO-GERS), in its help center. For an injury, the first report should still go to the manager on duty at the store where you fell.

Ralphs at the California Supreme Court

Two decisions against Ralphs show how California handles the injured person’s own share of fault.

Prescott v. Ralphs Grocery Co. (1954). A shopper walked into a Ralphs along the sidewalk beside the building. When she came out, the sidewalk was covered with water and there was no dry path. She took three or four careful steps, slipped on something and fell. An employee testified that vegetables were unloaded at a receiving door near the spot, and that he had washed it with hot water earlier. The jury ruled for Ralphs. The Supreme Court reversed because the jury had been told it could find she assumed the risk without finding she actually knew of the danger. As the court put it, where a person “should or could have discovered the danger by the exercise of ordinary care, the defense is contributory negligence and not assumption of risk” (opinion).

Cabral v. Ralphs Grocery Co. (2011). A Ralphs tractor-trailer driver stopped on the shoulder of Interstate 10 to eat a snack, in an area marked for emergency parking only, and a pickup driver left the road and hit the trailer. The jury found both drivers negligent and put 90% of the fault on the pickup driver and 10% on the Ralphs driver. The Court of Appeal said Ralphs owed no duty. The Supreme Court reversed, declined to create a rule exempting drivers who park alongside freeways, and started from “the general duty of each person to exercise, in his or her activities, reasonable care for the safety of others” (opinion; Civ. Code 1714).

Why those cases matter for a store fall today

Prescott was decided when a shopper’s own negligence could defeat a claim. In 1975 the California Supreme Court replaced that all-or-nothing rule with “pure” comparative negligence (Li v. Yellow Cab Co.). Cabral shows the result: even with 90% of the fault assigned to the pickup driver, who died in the crash, his family’s claim was not barred; the verdict was reduced by his share.

If you saw a wet floor at Ralphs and tried to cross it carefully, a jury can reduce your award for your share of the blame, but that alone does not defeat the case. You still have to prove the store’s side: that a hazard existed and that Ralphs knew, or would have found it with reasonable inspections (Ortega v. Kmart Corp. (2001)).

Falls outside the front door

Prescott’s fall happened on the walk beside the building, near a receiving door. Falls in places like that, including parking lots, loading areas and cart corrals, raise two questions.

Who controls that strip of ground? A store, a shopping-center landlord or a city may own or maintain it, and the defendants change with the answer. If a public entity is responsible, California generally requires a written claim within six months (Gov. Code 911.2), much sooner than the usual two years to sue a private owner (CCP 335.1). Our slip and fall deadline page explains both.

What was the store doing there? Deliveries, hosing down a walk, stacking pallets or collecting carts can create the hazard. Ask who was working outside that day and what they were doing, because that work may be where the hazard came from.

What to ask Ralphs for

At the store, ask the manager to write an incident report and give you its number. Then, through a lawyer and in writing, ask Ralphs to keep:

• Camera footage of the spot, the entrance and the parking lot from before and after the fall
• Delivery and receiving records for that day if you fell near a loading area
• Floor or walkway cleaning records, and the names of employees on shift
• Any photos employees took

Our slip and fall evidence page explains what each item proves. If no one saw you fall, see slip and fall with no witnesses.

If you fell at a Kroger store outside California

Kroger lists Ralphs as its Southern California banner and lists other banners elsewhere, such as Fred Meyer and QFC in the Pacific Northwest. A fall in Texas or Washington follows that state’s rules.

Texas cases are handled by the firm’s Texas-licensed attorneys, Joyce Ondich and John Efstathiou.

What this means for your case

A store defending a fall case commonly raises two points: that it did not know about the hazard, and that you should have avoided it. The first is answered with video, cleaning records and employee testimony. The second, in California, goes to the size of the award more than to whether you have a case. Get medical care, then follow our steps on what to do after a slip and fall. For other large chains, see our California store fall page. More answers are in our injury FAQs.

Common questions

Related pages

Injury law FAQs

Important: This page is general information, not legal or medical advice, and reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. Every case is different; talk to a lawyer about yours. Texas cases are handled by the firm’s Texas-licensed attorneys, Joyce Ondich and John Efstathiou. Last reviewed: November 7, 2026.