Do they always have a claim against a property owner if you fall on their property?

As a general rule, a property owner has a duty to keep their premises reasonably safe from dangers and hazards to protect those who may legally occupy the property from harm and injury. Having said that, it is also understood that not every injury that may occur on someone’s property can be attributed to negligence on the part of the party that owns and/or controls the property, third parties may be responsible to the dangerous condition that caused the injury and there are certain circumstances that lessen, or completely eliminate, the duty of the party controlling the property.

Certain criminal acts can be a bar to a party that is injured while on another’s property. If the injured party suffers death, injury, or other damages while attempting to commit a felony or is engaged in the actual commission of a felony while on the property, the injured party would be precluded from successfully bringing an action against a property owner for that injury.

If the injured party was trespassing on another’s property, the property owner would not be responsible for the harm that occurred to the injured party unless the property owner intentionally cause the harm that resulted in the trespasser’s injury or the property owner committed gross negligence in allowing the hazard that was the origin of the injury to exist.

Intoxication of the injured party may be a partial, or total, bar to any recovery, too. If the injured party is found to be legally intoxicated, as a result of consuming either alcohol or drugs (drugs taken in accord with a lawful prescription excluded), and the injured person is determined to be more that 50% at fault as a result of that intoxication) would also be a bar from recovery for said injuries.

Third parties may also be responsible for dangerous conditions on a property owners premises. If a cable company digs a trench to install co-axial cable and fails to properly cover the cable,

While there is no precise way to determine when someone else is legally responsible for something on which you slip or trip, cases turn on whether the property owner acted carefully so that slipping or tripping was not likely to happen, whether the property owner had knowledge to the dangerous condition and adequate notice of the condition affording the property owner the opportunity to correct the danger, and whether you were careless in not seeing or avoiding the thing you fell on. Potential injured parties must exercise reasonable care when occupying another’s property. If we see a potential hazard, and fail to avoid it even though we are able to, it is unlikely a claim of negligence against a property owner could be maintained. If, while walking on a sidewalk, we see a tree crossing the sidewalk and decide to try and step over the tree instead of walking around it, it would be difficult to support a claim of negligence against the property owner if an injury occurred because we tripped on a tree branch. In the event we choose to walk through a large pool of water on a driveway when there was a safer way to walk around the pool, a claim for slipping in the water would likely fail. We are responsible for using common sense when approaching known, obvious dangers and cannot blame another for an injury that could have been easily avoided.

Florida is a comparative negligence state. That means if an injured party is partially responsible as a result of their own conduct for any injury they may suffer while on another’s property, their ability to recover for their damages can be reduced, or eliminated, depending upon the percentage of fault that can be attributed to the injured party’s own conduct.

Determining whether or not you can make a claim in the event you suffered an injury as the result of a slip and fall can be confusing. You should seek the advice of an experienced personal injury attorney right away. The Law Office of Dan Newlin & Partners has the experience, knowledge and resources give you answers to all your questions. Help is just a phone call away. Please call (407) 888-8000 and have an attorney give you the answers you need to all of your questions about slip and fall accidents. Do not go it alone, get advice from an experienced attorney. Call Dan Newlin & Partners. The call is free, what do you have to lose?