What Constitutes Dangerous Premesis?

    /24-7PressRelease/ - PHOENIX, AZ, April 02, 2008 - When we are in a public building, such as a store, school, or library, we don't typically expect to find hazards with the potential to cause serious injury. Premises liability is the area of law that focuses on safety in public places, which includes outdoor areas as well as buildings. When property-owners fail to provide safe premises for visitors, they can be held liable for subsequent injuries.

Examples of Dangerous Premises
Physical hazards may include anything that poses a threat to people's safety..

• Loose handrails or lack of handrails on stairs
• Uneven concrete or flooring
• Loose floor tiles or floor boards
• Spilled liquids
• Unstable steps
• Falling debris or products
• Malfunctioning gates
• Toxic fumes
• Fires
• Malfunctioning elevators/escalators

Premises anywhere can be dangerous, including sports arenas, convention centers, malls, private homes, government buildings, hospitals, places of employment and open spaces.

A property owner is not necessarily responsible for injuries that constitute discovery of the hazard. For example, the stairs may have been just fine yesterday, but the hailstorm during the night loosened the handrail, and an elderly man fell this morning. Now the owner is notified of the danger and is responsible for correcting it. If the danger has been there for some time, and the owner knew or should have known about it but failed to remedy it, he or she may be found guilty of negligence.

Negligent Security
Property owners may also be held responsible if a crime or attack happens on their property — if it is determined that reasonable security measures had not been instituted. For instance, if an apartment building in a high-crime area fails to provide safe lock systems for its tenants, or a security monitoring system malfunctions and is never repaired, an owner may be held financially responsible for injuries resulting from attack. Or if an inadequate lighting system in a mall parking lot invited attacks, the mall owners could be considered liable for injuries resulting from the attacks.

Dangerous premises have caused catastrophic injury and even wrongful death.

Dangerous premises attorneys protect the public's right to safe premises by instituting legal action against negligent property owners.

Do you have a case?
If there is sufficient evidence to prove to the court that a property owner breached his or her legal duty owed to you, and that the property owner's negligent behavior caused your injury, you may be entitled to damages.

If you've been harmed in a dangerous premises accident and you live in the Phoenix, Arizona, area, please visit the website of Snyder & Wenner, P.C.

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