We have a duty to protect those that we allow into our homes and onto our property. If we fail to uphold this duty, the injured party may pursue what’s known as a premises liability claim. This type of personal injury lawsuit provides an individual with compensation when they are wrongly injured on someone else’s property, even if the property owner did not intend to cause harm to the individual.
If you are injured on someone else’s property, you may be wondering if you have a valid premises liability claim. In today’s blog, we provide some examples of common premises liability claims and we explain which elements must be present for you to win a premises liability award.
Examples Of Premises Liability Claims
At its core, premises liability requires that a property owner maintain a property in such a way that anyone who legally enters the premises is safe from injury. You can be held responsible if someone is injured at your home, just like you can hold a business responsible if you end up suffering injuries at the grocery store.
As we mentioned above, the property owner does not need to intend to cause harm to their visitors in order for a claim to be considered valid. In fact, in most cases, the property owner does not want anyone to be injured. But, as a result of oversight or negligence, injuries occur. Let’s share some examples of common premises liability cases we see in our line of work.
- Slip and fall on a neighbor’s icy sidewalk.
- Slip and fall on wet floors at a business entrance.
- Being bitten by a friend or family member’s dog.
- Being injured due in part to lack of lighting or building security.
- Tripping on poorly maintained floors, sidewalks or walkways.
These are just a few examples, and this is far from a comprehensive list. Essentially, if you are aware or should be aware of potential hazards on your property, and you do not take action to attempt to rectify the situation, and a guest is injured as a result of your inaction, you may find yourself facing a premises liability lawsuit.
The Elements of a Premises Liability Lawsuit
More specifically, there are three elements that must be present in order to have a valid premises liability claim. In order to pursue a premises liability claim, you must prove three elements:
- The property owner did not take reasonable steps to ensure your safety. They breached their duty of care to others on their property.
- You were injured as a result of this breach of duty.
- You suffered compensable damages as a result of this injury.
Let’s use an example to better explain these elements. You walked into a department store and slipped on some wet tile that had developed as a result of snow and ice being tracked inside off the boots of other customers. Despite the business having a small rug at the entryway, slippery spots began to accumulate nearby. Some employees recognized the water or had been informed of the wet spots, but you slipped and broke your wrist on the wet tile before they had time to clean it up.
In this scenario, the business breached their duty of care by failing to clean up a known hazard before it caused harm to a guest. You were injured because of their failure to clean up the wet spot, and you suffered compensable damages in the form of medical bills and potential lost time from work. Here, you would have a clear case for a premises liability lawsuit.
If you believe that you have suffered an injury that could be compensated through a premises liability claim, it’s important that you connect with a lawyer as soon as possible. Not only will that make it easier for your lawyer to collect and preserve evidence to assist with your claim, but there are timelines that need to be considered. Although you technically have six years to move forward with a premises liability claim, it will be much harder to earn an award the longer you wait, so don’t delay.
For more information about premises liability claims and your right to speedy compensation, connect with Dean and the team at Margolis Law Firm today at (952) 230-2700.
