When you’re hurt on someone else’s property, recovering compensation is not always a straightforward process or a foregone conclusion. Don’t let negligent property owners or their insurance companies take advantage of you when you can get help from a premises liability lawyer in Sunrise.
At Winston Law, our Sunrise personal injury lawyers understand the challenges involved in these cases and will fight to protect your rights. We thoroughly investigate incidents, gather evidence, and build strong cases to hold negligent parties accountable.
With over two decades of helping injury victims in South Florida, you can trust that your best interests are our top priority.
How Can A Premises Liability Attorney Help Me?
When you’ve been hurt, it isn’t always easy to collect the compensation you need from an insurance company or business owner. Their priority is to reduce their liability and limit what they pay out, which typically means they will fight to reduce or deny your claim.
Along the way, you may encounter several challenges.
Here are some common challenges you might be facing and how our attorneys can help:
Establishing Negligence
Your premises liability attorney in Sunrise will conduct a thorough investigation of the incident location. This includes reviewing inspection records and incident reports, and interviewing witnesses.
The goal is to determine if the property owner failed to use reasonable care to keep the premises safe or remedy a known hazard. This breach of duty must be proven to establish legal negligence.
Proving The Cause of Your Injuries
Simply showing an unsafe condition is not enough. The plaintiff must prove this specific defect or hazard directly caused the injuries in question. Your personal injury attorney works to obtain detailed medical records and may hire expert witnesses like engineers or physicians.
These experts can explain to a legal standard how the premises issue caused the accident and resulting harm.
Investigating Safety Standard Violations
Florida state and many municipalities have safety laws and building codes that regulate issues like adequate lighting, slip/fall resistance, hazard markings, and more. Our premises injury attorneys are familiar with these code requirements.
We can examine if the property violated statute standards through an unsafe design, material, or lack of maintenance.
Defending You Against Allegations of Liability
Property owners and their insurance often try to minimize or completely eliminate liability by alleging the injured party shared some fault.
They may claim the person failed to watch where they walked or was engaged in risky behavior. Your accident injury lawyer can work to disprove or reduce any assertions of contributory/comparative negligence through thorough evidence evaluation.
What Kinds Of Accidents Typically Lead to Premises Liability Claims?
Any time a dangerous condition on someone’s property or lapse in security and maintenance protocols leads to physical harm, it can potentially trigger a premises liability lawsuit.
Here are some common types of accidents that can result in premises liability claims:
- Slip and fall accidents – Slipping on slippery or wet surfaces, such as water or ice on floors.
- Trip and fall accidents – Tripping over objects left on walkways like boxes or cables, or tripping on uneven or broken pavement.
- Falling merchandise – Shelving or displays that are poorly secured, causing items to fall on customers.
- Escalator/elevator accidents – Malfunctions or lack of safety features that cause riders to fall or become injured.
- Pool, spa, or waterpark injuries – Lack of barriers, proper signage, or life-saving equipment leads to drowning.
- Playground accidents – Defective or damaged equipment causes falls or mechanical injuries.
- Parking lot mishaps – Poor lighting, potholes, or unmarked curbs that lead to collisions or falls.
- Construction zone incidents – Missing barricades or safety gear exposes the public to falling objects.
- Attacked by animal – Dog bites and other animal bite injuries on another person’s property.
If you suspect that the negligence of a property owner or manager led to your injuries, don’t hesitate to call our Sunrise premises liability attorneys for a free, no obligation case evaluation. We can help you understand if you have legal grounds for a personal injury claim.
What Are Some Injuries You Commonly Claim In Premises Liability Accident Cases?
Our lawyers have experience dealing with a wide variety of injuries. We understand how different types of injuries can impact the quality of your life and how the associated limitations can result in lost wages, pain, and emotional distress.
Here are some common types of injuries we claim in premises liability accidents:
- Head injuries – Concussions, traumatic brain injuries from falls.
- Back/neck injuries – Sprains, herniated discs, and damage to vertebrae from accident impacts.
- Broken/fractured bones – Wrist, arm, leg, rib, hip, and ankle fractures are prevalent.
- Shoulder damage – Rotator cuff and ligament tears from trying to catch a fall.
- Knee injuries – Torn meniscus, ligaments from knees buckling on impact.
- Soft tissue damage – Muscle pulls, bruising, and lacerations from hitting objects.
- Dislocations – Fingers, toes, arms, or shoulders being forced out of the socket.
- Internal injuries – Lacerated organs, internal bleeding from blows to the abdomen in falls.
- Nerve injuries – Radiating pain, and numbness from pinched or severed nerves.
In extreme cases involving falls from height, spinal cord damage is possible. This type of catastrophic injury can lead to astronomical costs and a lifetime of medical care.
To best protect your health and your claim, seek medical attention immediately after an accident and reach out to our premises liability lawyers in Sunrise as soon as possible.
What Damages Are Available In A Florida Premises Liability Claim?
The types of damages that may be available in a premises liability claim may include:
- Medical expenses – Past and future costs for doctor visits, surgery, physical therapy, prescriptions, medical devices, hospital stays, etc. related to the injury.
- Lost wages – Past lost income from being unable to work due to the injury and future lost earning capacity.
- Pain and suffering – Compensation for physical and mental pain experienced and that may continue in the future.
- Disfigurement or disability – If the injury leaves permanent scars, limitations, or disability.
- Loss of enjoyment of life – The inability to participate in hobbies, sports, or activities previously enjoyed.
- Property damage – Repair or replacement costs for personal property like cell phones or clothing.
If you’re unsure about the damages you’ve suffered or the extent of your injuries, you can be at risk of accepting a settlement that doesn’t cover all of your medical expenses and losses caused by the accident.
Our premises liability lawyers at Winston Law will carefully evaluate your losses and damages to ensure you don’t have to accept an undervalued settlement.
Where Do Premises Liability Accidents Typically Happen?
Some common types of premises where liability accidents frequently occur in Florida include:
- Shopping malls/retail stores – Slips and falls inside stores or crowded areas are common.
- Restaurants – Spills and debris on wet floor surfaces near customer areas lead to accidents.
- Grocery stores – Liquid or food spills that aren’t promptly cleaned up pose risks.
- Beaches/parks -uneven terrain, slippery surfaces, and lack of safety barriers or signage.
- Hotels/resorts – Risks include accidents in parking lots, pools, gyms, stairs, and guest floors.
- Stadiums/arenas – Crowding, poor visibility, or maintenance of seating areas and stairwells.
- Gas stations/convenience stores – Spills and clutter present trip hazards near entrances and pumps.
- Government buildings – Sidewalks, parking facilities, and ingress/egress areas can be risky.
- Schools/universities – Playgrounds, bleachers, locker rooms, labs, and general facilities see accidents.
- Nursing homes – Slippery floors and bathroom fall risks for fragile residents.
This list is not comprehensive of the places and types of accidents that happen on a regular basis. If you believe you have grounds for a claim, you can speak to a personal injury attorney with Winston Law today to understand your legal options.
Contact A Premises Liability Law Firm In Sunrise Today
Don’t let insurance companies take advantage after someone else’s actions or inaction caused your injury. The legal team at Winston Law is ready to be your voice. Our Sunrise premises liability lawyers know the challenges you face and have the resources, knowledge, and skills to overcome them.
We’ll safeguard your rights, negotiate aggressively, and fight until you receive the full, fair compensation you deserve. Contact us for a free, no-obligation consultation.
