Business Owner Liability in New York City

In New York, all property owners have a legal responsibility to keep their premises free from unreasonable safety hazards. This means that all businesses have a duty to look out for the wellbeing of customers and passersby. The failure to live up to this duty is negligence. When businesses are negligent, very serious injuries can occur. In the unfortunate event that you were injured on the premises of a New York City business, you may have a premises liability claim.

Business owners who invite customers and others onto their properties must:

If a business owner fails to take reasonable steps to ensure customers are safe while on the property, the owner may be held legally liable for accidents that result. This includes, for example, situations where a business owner knew of a high risk of crime but failed to provide adequate security. It also includes situations where customers are hit by falling debris or products, or when customers are injured in a fall.

Problems can exist indoors or outside of a business. For example, business owners may be responsible if someone slips in their parking lots, or if someone falls while walking on hazardous flooring inside the store.

Businesses may be responsible not just in situations in which they own the property, but also when they are in control of maintenance. For example, a business that rents a storefront and fails to take care of the parking lot or the indoor space could be held responsible if a patron falls, even though the business does not own the property where the accident happened.

Business Premises Liability: Common Types Of Cases

Injuries at businesses can occur for many different reasons. The following are some of the most common causes of injuries on commercial premises:

Slip and fall accidents: Slip and fall accidents are the most common cause of serious injuries at New York businesses. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), nearly 3 million Americans visit the emergency room because of fall accidents every year. This includes many thousands in New York City. These accidents often occur at businesses because of wet floors that were unmarked or damaged floors that were unrepaired. Suffering a slip and fall at a business can lead to many different types of injuries, including concussions, fractures, back injuries and broken hips.

Property defects: Many injuries occur because of the failure of businesses to repair defects on their property. The failure to conduct regular maintenance can create very dangerous conditions. To make matters even worse, many easy property repairs are needlessly ignored. For example, something as simple as the failure to replace a broken lightbulb can create very dangerous conditions for patrons.

Falling objects: Falling objects are also a major safety concern in New York. Falling objects can occur in numerous different situations. One common example is when construction or repair work is being done on the property. If property managers fail to take proper care to mark off certain areas while work is being done, customers could unwittingly be put in a very dangerous position. Falling objects can also occur if the property is negligently left unrepaired. For example, brick chunks may fall off of the side of the building. In the event that these falling objects strike a person, a very serious injury such as a traumatic brain injury (TBI) can be the result.

Poor security: Injuries on commercial premises can also occur because of the failure of the business to provide the proper level of security. This type of premises liability claim is known as an inadequate security claim. There are several different types of issues that could lead to an inadequate security claim, including lack of security personnel, poor screening at the entrances, undertrained staff, lack of surveillance cameras, and faulty door locks.

Dangerous Floors and Business Owner Liability for Falls

Dangerous floors are one of the leading reasons why customers fall at businesses. Some of the situations where falls are most likely to occur include when:

If conditions are unsafe and a business’ failure to correct the danger or warn about it is considered unreasonable or negligent, the business may be liable for resulting injuries.

Dangerous Stairs and Business Owner Liability

Stairs are another common site for falls at businesses. Dangerous conditions on stairs include:

Dangerous Conditions on Elevators and Escalators

Elevators and escalators are a common source of injuries at businesses. Elevator and escalator injuries are especially likely to happen to younger children and can occur:

How Do You Prove Liability In A New York Slip And Fall Case?

In New York business premises liability cases, you will typically need to show that a business was negligent in order to recover compensation for your injuries. Negligence is the failure to take proper care in a given situation. This means that if there was an unreasonable risk on the premises of a business, and you suffered an injury as a result, the business could be held liable.

Unfortunately, businesses and their insurance companies are rarely willing to accept liability without a fight. That is why it is imperative that you have an experienced New York premises liability lawyer by your side as soon as possible after your accident. Your lawyer will be able to review the facts of your case and determine exactly what you need to do next in order to recover full and fair compensation. Your lawyer may start by asking three key questions:

Under New York premises liability law, a business may be held liable for an injury that took place on their property if:

To best way to understand how this works, consider the following hypothetical example. Coffee was spilled on the floor of a busy Brooklyn department store. The spill is reported to a manager who then looks for an employee to mop up the mess. However, the manager is unable to find an employee and gets distracted by another issue, leaving the mess on the floor. Fifty minutes later a woman slips on the spilled coffee and falls on the very hard floor. As a result, she suffered a severe back injury. In this case, the store could be responsible for the woman’s injuries. This is because the manager had knowledge of the problem. He also could have reasonably foreseen that a customer could have fallen and gotten severely injured. Finally, he could have taken reasonable action which would have removed the risk.

What Compensation Is Available For Victims Of Business Negligence?

In New York, victims of negligence are entitled to recover compensation for the entire extent of their damages. Specifically, if you were injured at an NYC business, you may be able to seek compensation for:

Examples Of Recent New York Premises Liability Settlements

At David Resnick & Associates, P.C., our team has experience in New York City premises liability cases. We have a proven track record of success and we are ready to help you. The following is a small sample of the results that we have achieved for our clients:

$2,000,000

We recovered $2,000,000 for a man who suffered a broken leg after a brutal assault inside a local bodega.

$1,750,000

We obtained $1,750,000 for a local woman who seriously injured her neck after slipping and falling on a wet grocery store floor.

$1,000,000

We helped a victim recover $1,000,000 after falling in a stairwell that had a broken light.

$650,000

We recovered $650,000 for the victim of a slip and fall accident that occurred inside a local office building.

Contact Our New York City Office Today

At David Resnick & Associates, P.C., our attorneys have extensive experience handling premises liability claims in New York City. If you have been injured because of the negligence of a business, please contact our team today to schedule a free review of your case. Our firm proudly serves clients throughout the NYC region, including in Manhattan, Queens, Staten Island, Brooklyn, and the Bronx.