You are in: Home > Personal Injury

How to Handle a Premises Liability Claim

03rd May 2011
By LBrown in Personal Injury
RSS Legal RSS    Views: N/A

Whether it is a slip and fall on a wet shopping aisle or on an uneven staircase, you may recover damages if it was not your fault. The premises liability law applicable in Florida makes the owner or occupier of the property responsible for any injuries because of an unsafe condition.


It is imperative to find a personal injury attorney if you think you have an injury claim. The standard of care the owner/occupier of the premise requires to take of a visitor depends on the category of the visitor. The three specific categories are –


Invitees – Suppose you are at a departmental store to buy certain goods. The owner/occupier of the store must exercise the highest care to ascertain your safety while on the premises, as you are an invitee by virtue of implied consent.


Licensees – Suppose you visit a relative. The premises owner must extend the second highest standard of care to you in this circumstance.


Trespassers – Suppose there is a person who enters a premise without the permission of the owner/occupier. The standard of care does exist in such cases; however, it is of minimal nature in this situation.


Every premise owner/occupier owes a special duty to care for children. A child does not understand a hazard or a warning. In such a situation, there must be adequate safety measures to keep them away from any potential risks.


What does your attorney need to prove in a premises liability lawsuit in Florida? Here are the key points that your Ft. Myers personal injury attorney needs to establish.


The existence of an unsafe condition on the premises
The owner/occupier should have known about it
The owner/occupier had enough time to repair the problem or warn individuals about it
The owner/occupier failed to take the standard of care applicable
The occurrence of injuries were a direct result of this failure


It is possible to recover damages for premises liability if the negligence was on the part of the owner or occupier. However, the amount you can recover for injuries depends on the exact circumstances of the case. If you were partly at fault, the contributory negligence rule of Florida reduces the amount according to the degree of your fault.


Get legal help immediately if you think you have a claim; otherwise, you run the risk of missing the Florida statute of limitations, which gives you four years to file such a claim. Consult an attorney to decide how to approach the matter.



Author Bio: Linda Brown, a legal columnist in a magazine, offers tips and suggestions regarding personal injury related legal matters. If you are looking for a Ft. Myers Personal Injury Attorney, she recommends you to visit http://www.gunterfirm.com/personal-injury/
This article is copyright
Bookmark and Share




Ask a Question about this Article

powered by Yedda