Slip and falls involve an accident where someone slips, trips, or falls on another person’s property and is injured as a result. In these instances, the owner of the property where the accident occurred may be liable for the victim’s injuries. However, there are several factors to consider when assessing liability for a slip and fall.
By law, a property owner or manager, must ensure that their property is safe for visitors. Proving negligence in slip and fall cases can be incredibly difficult, which is why it is important to contact an experienced slip and fall attorney as soon as possible. If there are hazardous conditions that the property owner knew about or should have known about, and the owner/manager did not take reasonable steps to fix the problem, then he or she may be sued for negligence. Hazardous conditions might include: an icy sidewalk, a slippery floor, loose handrails, etc.
Premises Liability
Slip and falls are a part of premises liability that fall under the umbrella of personal injury law. Premises liability involves the legal responsibility of property owners and managers to keep their properties safe from hazards. Different legal rules apply to premises liability depending on whether the person injured is considered an invitee, licensee, or trespasser.
Invitee versus Licensee
An invitee is a person invited onto a property by the property owner for the purposes of business. Examples of invitees include a person shopping at a retail store during business hours or an HVAC technician hired to make repairs at a person’s home.
On the other hand, a licensee is a guest invited to someone’s property for social purposes, such as a party. The difference between invitees and licensees is that property owners generally owe a lower duty of care to licensees. This means that, with regard to licensees, property owners would only need to address safety hazards that are already known to the owner. Whereas, a higher duty of care is owed to invitees, which requires the property owner to actively examine the premises for any hazardous conditions.
The status of a person visiting a property can mean the difference between recovering full damages for your injury or recovering nothing. For this reason, you should contact Cohen|Harris as soon as possible after the accident occurs to determine the strength of your case.
Liability for Injuries Sustained by Trespasser
Typically, property owners do not owe any duty of care to keep trespassers safe, with the exception that property owners cannot trap or injure a trespasser. Individuals have very few rights with respect to injuries sustained while trespassing. However, the rules are different when the trespasser is a child. The property owner may be held liable if a child trespasses onto your property due to an “attractive nuisance” (i.e., a swimming pool). In these cases, a higher duty of care likely applies to the child-trespasser.