Importance Of Property Maintenance – Today’s guest blog is by the Law Offices of Paul Levine. The opinions expressed by the author in this and all guest blogs are not necessarily those of Gainesville Restoration and Remodeling.
Importance Of Property Maintenance
When a visitor or guest slips and falls on someone’s property or business, there is an assumption that a victim will sue the property owner without hesitation, and receive full compensation against the sustained injuries. However, the reality is very different. The assumption of receiving full compensation stems from the media showing the chain of events in movies or on television. But, creating a successful premises liability claim after a slip & fall on a residential or business property is a little more difficult than it seems, as it often requires the expertise of a personal injury attorney.
The importance of property maintenance cannot be ignored, as it saves the owner from a potential lawsuit. For instance, if you keep delaying routine repairs to your property, it can be problematic later on since the building deteriorates faster. This could lead to personal injury accidents, and create a substantial base to file a claim against you. Therefore, it is imperative to invest in preventive property maintenance services. If you are sued, you will then need to hire a personal injury attorney who will need to prove in court that you are not at fault.
It may have been negligence on the part of the property owner that caused the patron to slip, or it could have been an unfortunate and largely unavoidable situation. Accidents happen, so it is not always because of the negligence. Therefore, to win an injury claim for a slip and fall accident, the plaintiff needs to prove in court that the negligence was not their own.
Unreasonable Negligence in a Slip & Fall Case
No property owner gets to know about every slip hazard the moment it happens. However, every property owner should be aware of the potential actions that could be taken against them and should take actions to protect themselves from it. Therefore, when the expectation is not met, and negligence is found on behalf of the property owner and not on the person who fell, then a lawsuit may be filed that will compel the property owner to pay for the injuries sustained.
A case in point is, consider a situation in which a shopper drops a jar of juice at a grocery store, and makes a puddle in the aisle. The shopper tries to step away from the puddle, slips and get hurt. Hence, now all the liability is on that person because he was the only one aware of the issue, and did not ask for help from a store employee.
On the contrary, if that shopper, who had created the mess, walked away and told someone of the puddle, then the liability starts to shift. Now, if another shopper comes and slips, then the store can be held responsible for not cleaning it up.
Conclusion
Property maintenance is important, and in the event of neglect, the property owner could be held responsible. However, to achieve success in a premises liability case, it is advisable to hire an experienced personal injury attorney. This will increases the likelihood of you receiving a settlement claim. Therefore, having an experienced personal injury attorney by your side is of significant importance. Because of the statute of limitations, or the time, you have to file a claim and for other possible legal requirements, the presence of an experienced attorney is mandatory. So, if you are injured due to someone else’s negligence, then getting the right attorney who could help you in this critical time is important. An attorney can also help you in getting the maximum medical coverage for the injuries you have sustained in the accident.