Homeowners and business operators in Granite City, Illinois, have many responsibilities surrounding the upkeep of their property. Maintaining a property requires time and year-round care, from removing snow and ice during the winter to repairing and replacing damaged staircases and flooring affected by moisture after heavy rain in the late spring and summer. When property owners fail to see to the safety of their properties, serious injuries may occur. At Albers Injury Law, a Granite City premises liability lawyer can review your case, address your concerns, and answer questions about recouping your losses.
What Is Premises Liability?
Any owner of a private or commercial property holds the responsibility of ensuring it is safe for visitors to enter. When maintenance needs are not addressed, this can create a variety of dangerous situations, such as:
- Clutter resulting in trip-and-fall injuries
- Falls from damaged or old staircases
- Electrical burns or shocks from faulty wiring
Any of these injuries can result in costly medical bills, missed work, and the inability to enjoy the life you lived previously in Granite City. Hiring an Illinois premises liability attorney provides you with peace of mind and allows you to focus on healing and avoid stress that can have a severe impact on your mental health.
What Are the Elements of a Premises Liability Claim?
Before you file a lawsuit for premises liability, bringing your case to our attorneys can help you understand the elements involved and whether your situation meets the criteria for a claim These elements include:.
Duty of care
When you visit someone’s home or business, the owner of the property owes you a duty of care to prevent you from being injured while there. They must maintain their property in a way that prevents injuries and alerts you to certain circumstances that might cause them, such as a loose railing on a porch staircase or a nervous dog that may bite a stranger.
Breach of the duty of care
When a property owner knows about a condition that may cause an injury but fails to address it and you become injured as a result, this is a breach of the necessary duty of care. For example, if a business owner leaves a stepladder out after changing a light bulb and you trip over it, breaking a bone or striking your head on the floor, your injuries occurred because the property owner failed to protect you.
A resulting injury
When you incur an injury on someone’s property because the owner failed to provide the requisite duty of care, you have the right to seek damages. From a serious dog bite to a fall down a poorly maintained staircase, the resulting injuries can cause far-reaching physical and emotional injuries.
What Are Some Common Premises Liability Cases?
While each premises liability case is unique, some share similar circumstances. Our premises liability attorneys have experience with handling a variety of losses due to an injury caused by another individual and can provide you with a better understanding of your legal options.
Slip-and-fall injuries
Slipping, tripping, and falling injuries are a common thread in premises liability cases. Slippery floors, unsecured carpeting, and walkways with raised or cracked areas can all lead to broken bones, concussions, and spinal injuries.
Falling objects
When storms blow through Granite City, heavy tree branches and snow loads can fall suddenly and cause severe injuries. Owners of any property must trim large trees and remove snow loads safely to prevent them from injuring others.
Swimming pool accidents
Illinois law requires pool owners to surround their pool area with a fence that is at least 3.5 feet tall to prevent children from accessing the water on their own. They must also maintain the pool in a way that prevents accidents, such as repairing or replacing old or malfunctioning pool equipment.
Do Illinois Landlords Owe a Duty of Care to Their Tenants?
Landlords who rent any type of property in Illinois must consider their duty of care if they want to avoid a premises liability lawsuit. They must provide their tenants with a safe living space and make necessary repairs to the property as damages occur, including:
- Repairing and maintaining HVAC systems
- Addressing leaks
- Maintaining walkways
- Providing maintenance for elevators and staircases
In most cases, Illinois law notes that landlords must protect their tenants from any injuries caused by pests, such as mice, rats, and insects, by having their properties treated for common pests that were not drawn to the area due to a tenant’s failure to keep the rented area clean.
What Are Degrees of Liability?
When you bring your case to our Granite City attorneys, they will investigate and discuss the degrees of liability so you understand your rights and responsibilities.
Property owners owe a general duty of care to anyone invited onto the property. Commercial property owners owe the greatest duty because protecting their customers from harm ensures the ongoing success of their businesses. Renters may share a smaller degree of liability to keep their rental space clean and free from clutter that can cause a fire or trip-and-fall injury.
How Can a Granite City Premises Liability Lawyer Assist You?
When you experience a serious injury on someone else’s property, the owner may either not have homeowner’s insurance or their policy limits do not cover your injuries completely. Our attorneys can help you recover several types of awards based on the circumstances of your injury.
Reviewing the cost of medical bills
After an injury, you may face astronomical medical bills that include costs for emergency care, scans and X-rays, and the medical equipment you may need. You may also claim the cost of any outpatient or in-home therapy you require as part of your recovery.
Valuing emotional trauma
Premise liability accidents cause more than physical injuries. If the cause of your accident was especially frightening, you may develop emotional trauma and suffer from anxiety, panic attacks, and triggers that cause you to relive the incident. Our attorneys can place a value on this type of non-economic loss.
Offering complete legal representation
After an injury, you need the time and peace to heal completely. Our attorneys provide you with complete representation, from speaking to witnesses and insurance company representatives to advocating for your best interests in court.
Contact Us With Your Premises Liability Case Today
When you suffer an injury on someone else’s property, the cost of medical bills and other losses can have you facing an uncertain future. Contact us today and let our attorneys at Albers Injury Law provide you with a Granite City liability lawyer you can count on.