Learn about the duties which, when breached, can result in liability for premises accident injuries.
Have you been injured in an accident on someone else’s property? You may very well be able to secure compensation from the property owner. However, this is only true if it can be proven that the property owner breached their duty towards you. Here are some key points to understand about property owner duties.
Duty to Prevent Foreseeable Harm
Property owners are expected to exercise reasonable care to prevent visitors from suffering foreseeable harm due to hazards on their property. This duty of reasonable care can be fulfilled in two main ways. The property owner could put up clear signage warning of the hazard. For example, they could put up “wet floor” signs in a store in an area known to have a plumbing leak. Or, the property owner could remedy the hazard. For example, they could fix that leak and dry the floor with a mop.
If there was no reasonable way that the property owner could have foreseen a given danger, they are not liable for the resulting injury. It is important to bear in mind that property owners are expected to inspect their premises regularly to identify hazards, so simple ignorance of the danger is not necessarily a valid defense against a premises accident injury claim.
No Duty Regarding Open and Obvious Hazards
There is an important exception to the rule of foreseeable harm: if the danger is so open and obvious that any reasonable person should be able to see and avoid it, then the property owner is under no duty to warn of the hazard. However, depending on the circumstances and the nature of the danger, they may still have a duty to remedy it.
Duties Extending to Adjacent Properties
Normally, property owners are only liable for injuries that occur on their own premises. However, their duties may be expanded to accidents that occur elsewhere, if some aspect of the property created an unreasonable risk of the accident taking place. For example, there was a case in which a child was killed when his tricycle rolled out of an apartment complex play area, down a steep driveway, and into a busy street. The California appeals court found that the apartment complex was liable for the death because the configuration of the playground and the driveway created a foreseeable risk of injury to children.
Duties Are Not Limited to Owners
In this blog we have been continually referring to “property owners” for the sake of convenience. In reality, liability can attach to whoever is in possession or control of a property. This does not have to be through ownership but may be through leasing or management of the premises.
Need Help with a Premises Accident Claim?
If you have been injured due to a property owner’s negligence, Fernando D. Vargas can help. Call us at 909-982-0707 to request a free consultation where you can discuss your premises accident with Attorney Vargas and get his professional opinion as to the merits of your case and your potential for securing compensation.
