How to Avoid Liability Claims: Accident-Proof your Property

by Molly P. on July 29, 2013

  • Sumo

You may take every precaution to make your business property as appealing and inviting to the public as possible. While cosmetics are important to your business’s success, so is your care for safety. A customer who falls down or becomes injured on your commercial property could easily sue you and hold you liable for any variety of expenses. When you want to make your property as safe as possible for visitors, you should take several important steps to accomplish this task.

  • Fix Holes on the Property

Holes in your parking lot and lawn not only make your business unsightly; they also can pose a danger to your business’s clients and visitors. As you inspect your property, you should locate these divots and get them filled immediately. Filling them with a sturdy material like bedding soil or asphalt can prevent them from collapsing and redeveloping on your property.

  • Repair Loose Boards

If you have a wooden porch or walkway into your business, you should make sure that this fixture is safe and sound for your visitors. Loose boards can cause people to trip and fall. In fact, slip and fall accidents remain a top threat to public health. People who slip and fall on loose boards can suffer devastating injuries like broken hips and concussions. Rather than face a lawsuit because you have boards that need hammered down or replaced, you should take care to maintain your walkway and porches.

  • Replace Broken and Cracked Glass

It is very easy for glass doors and windows to be cracked or broken. People slamming the door, people bumping into windows, and even temperature fluctuations can cause glass windows and doors to break and crack. When these fixtures fall into disrepair, your customers could be at risk of getting cut or having glass shards lodge in their skin. You should make these repairs or replace your glass fixtures immediately.

  • Watch Floor Mats and Runners

You may use floor runners and door mats in your business to provide customers something on which to wipe their feet, as well as to give your business a welcoming look. However, these elements can be dangerous if they are not properly looked after or placed strategically. Mats and runners that are allowed to curl up, lay askew, or are placed in the wrong place can cause people to trip, fall, and land on the floor. Rather than risk your customers’ safety, you should replace your mats with fresh ones every few days, make sure their corners stay down, and keep them in places where people will not trip on them.

Avoiding Liability for Accidents

Despite your best care, you may still face liability for accidents at your business. Customers may still say that you and your company are responsible for their pain and injuries. If the accident was genuinely your fault, you will more than likely face legal responsibility for the person’s injuries. However, if you can prove through video or closed circuit monitoring that the accident did not happen or was staged, your lawyer can take this evidence to court and help you avoid penalties. Even so, you should not talk to, agree with, or appear in court without your qualified personal injury representation, whether they are New York slip and fall accidents attorneys or Nevada worker’s comp lawyers by your side.

Taking care to make your property safe and inviting for customers is important. It is also vital that you retain legal help if you are accused of negligence and held liable for an accident at your business. Your best course of action would be to hire a personal injury lawyer to help you.

Freelance author and artist, Molly Pearce hopes to own her own gallery one day so she is always researching smart business moves for property owners. The New York slip and fall accidents attorneys at https://www.perecman(dot)com provide a variety of information on personal injury and negligence on their site. As someone who has been injured at a place of business before, she writes to raise consciousness of all the variables and remind owners to take precautions, including hiring an experienced attorney for any unavoidable legal matters that do arise.

Molly P.
Born with a Passion for art, music, fun, fashion, adventure, blogging, and life lived to the fiercest! A great variety of educational, professional, and personal experience has gifted me an open mind, strong heart, and a wealth of stories to tell. Concerned with human rights and the state of the natural world. Thriving on the fresh, thoughtful, healthy, and hilarious.

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