When you are on someone else’s property, they owe you a duty to keep their premises in a reasonably safe condition. Negligent maintenance of property results in more injuries than most people realize. Most times, premises liability claims arise when someone falls and injures themself on another person’s property.
According to the National Floor Safety Institute, falls account for about 8 million emergency room visits every year. The World Health Organization defines a fall as an event that results in a person inadvertently coming to rest on the ground, the floor, or another lower level. If you were injured on someone else’s property in Pennsylvania, contact a Philadelphia premises liability lawyer today.
Premises Liability Law in Pennsylvania: An Overview
Pennsylvania premises liability law imposes an obligation on property owners to maintain their property in a reasonably safe condition. If a property owner negligently maintains their property and their negligence causes someone else’s injury, the property owner might be liable for any losses.
Factors To Consider When Proving Premises Liability
Premises liability claims require you to prove that a property owner was negligent in maintaining their property. To prove negligence, you need to establish four elements: duty of care, breach of duty, causation, and harm.
Duty
Owners and occupiers of property owe a duty of care to those legally on their property to remedy or warn about dangers and keep their property reasonably safe. In premises liability law, visitors are divided into three categories: invitees, licensees, and trespassers. Exactly what an owner or occupier must do to keep a visitor safe depends on which category a visitor is in.
Invitees are people who visit a property to transact business, such as a store customer. Property owners owe invitees the highest duty of care to keep their property in a safe condition. The property owner should remedy any condition they know or should have known was dangerous and warn invitees of open and obvious dangers. A licensee is someone who comes onto another person’s property with permission to be there, such as a social guest.
Property owners owe licensees a slightly lower duty of care than an invitee. Property owners do not owe a duty of care to individuals trespassing on their property other than to not harm a trespasser through wanton or willful conduct.
Breach
A property owner breaches their duty of care when they fail to maintain their property and keep it in a reasonably safe condition. A property owner can breach their duty of care in numerous ways, such as:
Failing to provide warnings about wet or icy conditions,
Lack of adequate lighting in stairways,
Leaving drink or food spills on the floor,
Leaving debris on walkways, or
Failing to warn of open and obvious dangers.
Photographs or other documentation of one of these conditions can help you establish that the property owner breached their duty of care.
Causation
To prove causation, you must show that the property owner’s negligence directly caused your injury. While this may seem relatively easy, the property owner may allege that something else caused your injury. A qualified Philadelphia premises liability attorney can help you establish the link between your injury and the property owner’s negligence.
Damages
Finally, you must prove you suffered actual damages because of the property owner’s breach. You cannot file a premises liability lawsuit if you did not incur any losses, such as medical bills or lost wages. The damages people typically suffer in premises liability accidents are described further below.
Where Do Premises Liability Accidents Happen?
Premises liability accidents often occur in places where a property owner or occupant opens up their business to customers and other invitees. For example, premises liability accidents can happen in:
Grocery stores,
Ski resorts,
Hotel resorts,
Department stores,
Apartment complexes,
Parking lots,
Shopping malls, or
Restaurants.
Remember, property owners do not owe a duty of care to someone who is on their property illegally.
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How Do You Calculate Premises Liability Settlements?
Settlements for premises liability ought to provide compensation for any harm you endured due to the property owner’s failure to properly maintain their property, which includes:
Medical bills,
Lost wages for missed work,
Rehabilitation costs,
Pain and suffering,
Loss of enjoyment of life,
Loss of future earning capacity, and
Emotional distress.
You can offer evidence of these expenses by presenting your medical bills, testimony from your doctor, or photographic evidence of your injuries.
What Kinds of Injuries Happen in Premises Liability Accidents?
Premises liability injuries can range from minor abrasions to life-threatening issues. Typical injuries sustained in cases involving premises liability are:
Back injuries,
Broken bones,
Spinal cord injuries,
Neck injuries,
Pulled muscles,
Bruises and scrapes,
Sprains, and
Paralysis.
If you suffer an injury in a premises liability accident, contact a premises liability attorney in Philadelphia as soon as possible so that they can protect your right to compensation.
How Can a Philadelphia Premises Liability Attorney Help My Case?
A qualified Philadelphia premises liability attorney can plan a strategy to effectively present your case and maximize your potential recovery. The team at Rosen Justice Injury Lawyers has extensive experience handling premises liability claims. A member of our team can help you by:
Negotiating with the opposing party or an insurance company on your behalf,
Locating eyewitnesses to testify, and
Helping you calculate the value of your losses.
At Rosen Justice Injury Lawyers, our Philadelphia premises liability lawyers are committed to helping our clients secure the outcome they deserve. If you or a loved one suffered injuries in a premises liability accident, contact our office today to schedule your free initial consultation.
Connect with a Premier Philadelphia Premises Liability Lawyer Today!
Contact our Philadelphia premises liability lawyer today. When you work with an attorney at Rosen Justice Injury attorneys, you can expect effective and compassionate legal service. We will take the time to meet with you one-on-one and listen to the details of your case so that we completely understand your needs and goals.
A one-size-fits-all strategy cannot address every premises liability claim. That is why we create a personalized strategy for each of our clients that emphasizes the strengths of their case. If you or a loved one suffered injuries due to another person’s negligence, contact Rosen Justice Injury Lawyers today. You will not pay us a single penny unless we recover compensation for you.
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When you hire Rosen Justice Injury Lawyers, you’re the top priority. We treat everyone who walks through our doors like family, and we always go the extra mile for our family.
We know your financial struggles; that’s why we don’t require you to pay any legal fees upfront and no out-of-pocket expenses unless we win your case. That’s our promise to you.
Whether you need a slip and fall attorney, car accident attorney, dog bite attorney, SEPTA accident attorney, or wrongful death attorney in Philadelphia, our team has the knowledge and skills to guide you through the process and deliver results.
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