Riverside Premises Liability Lawyers
Riverside offers both locals and tourists many opportunities for recreation and enjoyment. The city also has numerous choices for dining out, nightlife, and shopping. However, when property owners fail to maintain their premises in a safe and reasonable condition, accidents may happen and lead to debilitating injuries for property visitors.
No one expects to suffer injuries when they enter another person’s property. In fact, premises accidents frequently occur out of the blue and catch property visitors completely off guard. In a premises accident, a property visitor may fall to the ground, sustaining severe injuries that require extensive medical treatment and result in high medical bills. Moreover, an accident victim may be unable to work for a significant amount of time after their accident, resulting in lost earnings. Alternatively, a premises visitor might become the victim of an assault or attack, leading to debilitating injuries and other losses.
If you suffered severe injuries in a recent premises accident, you should receive the medical attention you need immediately after your accident. Moreover, you should speak with a knowledgeable personal injury lawyer who can handle every aspect of your claim or lawsuit involving the property owner and/or their insurance company.
The experienced Riverside premises liability lawyers at Bentley & More LLP understand the severe nature of premises accidents and the injuries that often result. With mounting medical costs and significant lost earnings, we realize it may be difficult to keep your head above water. Our legal team is here to help you pursue the monetary recovery you deserve from the property owner’s insurance company via a personal injury claim or lawsuit.
Our experienced legal team has recovered millions of dollars in compensation for our clients, many of whom suffered injuries in premises accidents. We can meet with you to discuss your accident circumstances, determine your claim-filing eligibility, and begin pursuing the monetary recovery you need to become whole again after your accident.
For a free case evaluation and legal consultation with a Riverside premises liability lawyer, please call us or contact us online for more information.
Special note for other law firms: Our legal team handles tough cases involving serious accidents and catastrophic injuries and losses. We accept referrals from other law firms if you have a case you need assistance with. Feel free to call us to discuss our referral program today.
Types of Premises Accidents
Accidents that occur on others’ premises can happen in many different ways. In most instances, these accidents happen when property owners fail to take the necessary precautions in safeguarding and maintaining their premises.
While slips and falls due to floor spills are some of the most common premises accidents, other types of accidents can also occur, including:
- Staircase accidents, when a property owner fails to properly maintain the carpeting or flooring materials on their staircase, and a property visitor falls down the stairs.
- Loose railing accidents, when a property owner fails to properly secure railings to the wall, causing a visitor to lose their balance
- Outdoor sidewalk accidents, where a property owner fails to repair concrete spalling or other defects, including deep cracks, causing a visitor to lose their balance and fall down
- Driveway accidents, where property owners fail to maintain their driveway surfaces, causing potholes or cracks to develop and causing a trip and fall accident
- Negligent security incidents, when a premises owner fails to maintain adequate security presence on their property, including both sufficient security cameras and an adequate number of security guards, and an assault occurs
- Dog bites and animal attacks, which can leave victims devastated or dead
- Swimming pool accidents, which cause brain injuries from drownings, near-drownings, and collisions with the pool wall or floor from driving
Property owners are solely responsible for the upkeep of their premises. When they fail to maintain their premises in a reasonably safe condition for the benefit of their visitors, they may incur legal liability if a visitor suffers injuries.
The Riverside premises liability attorneys at Bentley & More LLP can meet with you to discuss your eligibility for filing a premises accident claim or lawsuit. If you can pursue legal action against the property owner or their insurance company, we can start gathering the necessary claim documents on your behalf and seeking the monetary compensation you deserve for your premises-accident injuries.
What is a Premises Owner’s Legal Duty of Care to Property Visitors?
To recover monetary compensation in a premises accident, a premises owner must first owe the injured property visitor a legal duty of care. The duty of care that a property owner owes to a visitor depends upon the circumstances, including the property visitor’s legal status on the property.
For example, in most instances, a property owner does not owe a trespasser a legal duty of care. A trespasser is someone present on the property without permission from the owner. However, if the owner knows about the trespasser, they may owe the trespasser some duty of reasonable care. If a child trespasses because of an attractive nuisance like an ungated swimming pool, a duty of care may apply.
On the other hand, licensees are individuals who are present on someone else’s property for their own benefit rather than the property owner’s benefit. Common examples of licensees are social guests or visitors to a person’s residence. Property owners have a legal duty to timely warn about or repair hazardous conditions on their properties for the benefit of social guests. If they fail to do so and an injury happens, the property owner may be legally responsible.
Finally, business invitees are present on someone else’s property to benefit the owner financially. For example, individuals who go to a Riverside nightclub or restaurant are likely business invitees to the establishment since they are there to financially benefit the property owner.
Property owners owe business invitees a very high legal duty of care. Specifically, property owners must warn about—or correct—dangerous conditions they know exist on their premises. However, this duty of care goes a bit further concerning business invitees. Specifically, property owners must thoroughly inspect their properties for potentially unknown hazards that might exist. If they become aware of a danger, they must swiftly warn about or repair it within a reasonable time.
The Riverside premises liability attorneys at Bentley & More LLP can help you determine if the property owner in your case owed you a legal duty of care. If the property owner likely violated that duty, we can help you file a premises accident claim with the property owner’s insurance company and begin pursuing the monetary recovery you need for your injuries.
Proving the Elements of a Premises Accident Claim
The first element of any premises accident claim or lawsuit is duty. In other words, the accident victim must establish that the owner of the property where the accident happened owed them a legal duty of care. Next, they must show that the property owner violated this legal duty of care in at least one way. For example, in the context of a slip and fall, the property owner must have failed to clean up a spill on the floor within a reasonable amount of time.
In addition to proving a violation of the legal duty of care, a premises accident victim must establish that the property owner’s breach was both the actual and foreseeable cause of their accident. Finally, the accident victim must demonstrate that as a direct result of their accident, they suffered at least one physical injury.
Establishing these legal elements in a premises accident claim or lawsuit is frequently an uphill battle, especially if accident victims do not have legal representation. Insurance companies treat unrepresented individuals very badly and typically offer them far less money than their case is actually worth.
Even with legal representation, the insurance company will not make matters easy. In fact, it is to their advantage to try and settle premises accident claims as quickly and cheaply as possible. After all, insurance companies may lose a lot of money if they ultimately have to pay out a large financial settlement to a premises-accident victim.
We can introduce expert testimony on your behalf to prove the legal elements of your claim or lawsuit. For example, your lawyer can retain an accident reconstructionist to visit the incident scene, speak with witnesses, review documentation, and determine how the accident occurred. Accident reconstructionists can be extremely helpful in premises accident cases where an insurance company disputes fault for the accident.
In addition to retaining an accident reconstructionist on your behalf, we can also retain a medical expert who can causally relate your injuries to the premises accident. A medical expert can also show, to a reasonable degree of medical certainty, that one or more of your claimed injuries are permanent.
Common Premises Accident Injuries
In many premises accident scenarios, accident victims fall to the ground and suffer debilitating and sometimes permanent injuries. The injuries that a premises accident victim sustains typically depend upon how hard they hit the ground and the body part or parts they strike.
The amount of force involved, as well as the specific circumstances of the accident, may also determine the injuries that an accident victim ultimately suffers.
Common premises-accident injuries include:
- Permanent soft tissue injuries
- Broken bones
- Rib fractures
- Traumatic brain injuries
- Internal organ damage
- Internal bleeding
- Spinal cord injuries
- Paralysis
Immediately after a premises accident, you should file a written report with the property manager or supervisor. You should also seek same-day medical treatment for your injuries, helping to ensure that they do not become any worse. At a hospital emergency facility, a treating medical provider can order X-rays and other studies to diagnose your medical condition.
Meanwhile, the Riverside premises liability attorneys at Bentley & More LLP can start handling the legal aspects of your case, including gathering documents and preparing to submit a settlement demand package to the insurance company. After your medical treatment is complete or you know your overall prognosis, we can send the demand package and begin negotiating with the settlement adjuster assigned to your claim.
What Damages Can I Recover from a Premises Accident?
The total monetary damages that a premises accident victim may recover will depend on the type of accident, the amount of force involved, the severity of their injuries, and the total cost of their related medical treatment.
Via settlement or litigation, premises accident victims may recover monetary compensation for:
- Past and anticipated medical costs
- Loss of earning capacity
- Lost income
- Inconvenience
- Past and future pain and suffering
- Mental distress
- Loss of the ability to use a body part
- Loss of life enjoyment
- Permanent disability or disfigurement
- Loss of spousal companionship
- Lifetime care costs
If a premises accident victim suffers fatal injuries in their accident, surviving family members can pursue a wrongful death claim or lawsuit against the property owner or their insurance company. Potential wrongful death damages may include compensation for loss of the decedent’s future earnings, burial and funeral expenses, and loss of the decedent’s care, companionship, and comfort.
Our legal team can explore your eligibility for these damages and help you set realistic monetary expectations for your premises accident claim or lawsuit.
Call a Riverside Premises Liability Lawyer Today for More Information
Greg Bentley & Keith More, Premises Liability Lawyers
If you sustained debilitating injuries in a premises accident that resulted from a property owner’s negligence, you should take swift legal action. Waiting too long to file a claim or lawsuit in your case may jeopardize your ability to recover monetary damages. Reach out to a Riverside personal injury lawyer.
In California, premises accident victims only have two years from their accident date to file a lawsuit seeking monetary recovery. The California Personal Injury Statute of Limitations imposes this stringent deadline in most cases. Failing to file a lawsuit within two years, absent exceptional circumstances, will prevent an accident victim from recovering any monetary damages in their case.
At Bentley & More LLP, we can file your claim or lawsuit as quickly as possible, protecting your right to recover damages. We can also assist you throughout the negotiation and litigation stages of your case and, if necessary, represent you at a jury trial or binding arbitration proceeding. We will work hard to maximize your total monetary award, ensuring you recover fair damages for your injuries.
For a free case evaluation and legal consultation with a Riverside premises liability attorney, please call us at (949) 870-3800 or contact us online.
Bentley & More LLP – Riverside Office
Phone: (949) 870-3800