Premises Liability Lawyer

Get Compensation You Deserve

Premises Liability

A Birmingham premises liability lawyer can help you in this area of law. It covers injuries caused by the negligence of those owning and managing properties. You may have fallen on parking garage stairs. A home improvement store’s floor may have been slick with oil, causing you to slip. Your neighbor’s dog may have attacked you. These are all premises liability cases.

These accidents can be the result of just about any interaction you might have with someone’s property. They can be as simple as a slip and fall or as complex as a building fire. The Wininger Law Firm can help you, or a loved one injured on another’s property, get the compensation you deserve.

Property owners must use care to keep visitors reasonably safe on their property. If they, or property managers, fail to maintain the premises and you get hurt, that owner or manager may need to compensate you for the harm.

A Premises Liability Attorney May Be Critical to Your Case’s Success

Just getting hurt on another’s property isn’t enough to establish your legal rights. You must show that the property owner’s negligence harmed you. If the property owner’s insurance company can show you are partially at fault, your claim ends. Under Alabama law, if you are responsible in any way for your injuries, the insurance company can deny your claim, and your lawsuit could be dismissed.

Because it may not take much to end your claim, working with a Wininger Law Firm attorney is critically important. We can help you navigate through this tough legal landscape. If you represent yourself, you may say or write something by mistake that makes it look like you’re at fault. It could be the end of your case.

A Premises Liability Lawyer Could Argue the Property Owner Owed You Greater Care

Premises liability law doesn’t use a one-size-fits-all approach. A property owner’s responsibility varies based on who you are and why you’re on the property. The same level of care isn’t required for all visitors. They fall into three categories:

  • Invitee: This category of person provides a benefit to the landowner while visiting. This could be a store customer or a contractor coming to a home to do repairs. The property owner owes the greatest responsibility to protect this person. If there’s a known hazard and the invitee is injured by it, the landowner will probably be held responsible.
  • Licensee: A licensee is a social guest visiting a property without a benefit to the landowners. He or she should warn the licensee of known hazards, like a steep slope, to prevent liability for injuries.
  • Trespassers: They are on the property without permission. Property owners have the least responsibility for them. Unless there is intentional harm, the landowner probably won’t be accountable. An exception is for children who might be attracted to something on the property like a swimming pool.

Proving Negligence in Premises Liability Cases

Like most personal injury cases, premises liability is based on negligence. It’s based on relationships between the parties and whether enough care was used to protect the victim. A Birmingham premises liability lawyer can help you carry the burden of showing it’s more likely than not that …

  • The property owner owed you an obligation (depending on your status as a visitor) to take actions to make sure you are safe.
  • The owner didn’t live up to their obligation.
  • That failure is the legal and factual cause of your accident and injuries.
  • Under Alabama law, the property owner must compensate you for the harm done.

Developing a full case to prove negligence can be complex and, given that partial fault can end your case, you don’t want to risk losing a claim with a misstep. Give yourself the best possible opportunity for a settlement that will provide the compensation you deserve. Contact a Birmingham premises liability attorney at The Wininger Law Firm today.

When to Seek Help from a Slip and Fall Lawyer

A slip and fall case can happen if the victim loses their footing, falls, and is injured. There could be something blocking the way and causing a trip. A slip could result from a slippery surface. Liquid, ice, or debris could be on the floor, which may be uneven. Even low lighting in a building or on a parking lot or walkway could cause a slip and fall.

Under Alabama law, depending on your status, you would need to prove the owner knew about the unsafe condition or, acting as a reasonable person, should have known about it. This requires an investigation by a premises liability attorney. Documentation of the site of your fall when it happened is important. If it’s possible, get photos of the dangerous area after you fell and the names of witnesses and the person responsible for the property.

There are common types of cases that our premises liability lawyer sees. Our team is familiar with these cases and knows the strategy needed to get our injured clients the compensation they deserve.

Stairs Pose a Bigger Risk for a Premises Liability Case

A slip and fall on a flat surface that might give you bruises could leave you severely injured if it happens on a staircase. There are several hazards unique to stairs and there are ways a property owner could avoid them by making the stairs more safe.

  • Outdoor stairs: Ice and rainwater may collect, making stairs slippery. Hazards should be cleared. Stairs could be constructed to minimize water and ice buildup. The surface could be slip-resistant.
  • Indoor stairs: Something slippery may be spilled on them but not cleaned up. Non-slip runners could make them safer.
  • Stairs that violate building codes: These codes are meant to keep structures safe. If they’re ignored, a fall may be more likely. Stairs can be uneven, the wrong height or depth. Handrails may be missing, not strong enough, in disrepair, or built at the wrong height.

How Swimming Pools Can Lead to Premises Liability Claims

Pool owners should keep them safe for friends, family, and uninvited guests. In Alabama, premises liability law states that a pool could be considered an “attractive nuisance.” The owner might be responsible for injuries or deaths of those who are and are not invited.

The law understands children are attracted to swimming pools. They may want to go for a swim and try to get into the pool without their parents or pool owner knowing about it. Since children don’t fully understand the danger they may be in, swimming pool owners must take extra steps to make their pool safe.

Negligent Security

A property owner isn’t responsible for everything that may happen there. But one could be liable for harm if foreseeable criminal acts occur on site. If a visitor is injured during a crime, the landowner may be liable if:

  • The crime was foreseeable.
  • Reasonable acts weren’t taken to try to prevent it.

Generally, the owner isn’t obligated to try to prevent crimes from happening on the property. A duty to act is expected if the criminal acts are foreseeable. Whether they’re foreseeable is often disputed. It can be established by prior, similar crimes in the area. A Birmingham premises liability attorney could come up with the right argument and make the case a success. If you were harmed by a criminal act on property owned by a company or another person, contact our premises liability attorney in Birmingham. The team at The Wininger Law Firm will help determine if you have a case.

Dog Bites Can Result in a Premises Liability Claim

Injuries by animals kept on a property are part of premises liability cases. Under Alabama statute, a dog owner can be liable for bites and other injuries, but there are limits:

  • There’s liability if the victim was attacked on the dog owner’s property or the dog chased the person off the property.
  • If the owner didn’t know the dog was or is dangerous, the owner will only pay the victim’s “actual expenses.”

Negligence could also be a way to get compensation for injuries, if it can be shown that the owner knew the dog could be dangerous (it bit someone in the past or acted like it wanted to do so). Showing that the owner violated an animal control law concerning safety may also show liability. An experienced premises liability attorney knows the Alabama laws governing dog bite cases and can tell you whether you have a strong case.

Damages in a Premises Liability Case

Part of your negligence case is showing that you were injured. You may have suffered a head injury in a fall, broken a bone, or injured your back. You may have suffered physically, emotionally, and financially as well. If your insurance claim or lawsuit is successful, your compensation is based on what happened to you after the accident. Our premises liability lawyers may help you get the most from your lawsuit.

Economic Damages

Some of these damages are easy to calculate. There are financial records and receipts to back them up:

  • Past and estimated future medical bills
  • Past and estimated future lost income
  • Property loss or damage.

Non-Economic Damages

You can also be compensated for other losses. With the help of a Birmingham premises liability lawyer, evidence can be provided by you, family members, your healthcare providers, and medical experts that relate to:

  • Physical pain
  • Mental anguish and stress
  • Physical scarring and disfigurement
  • Physical impairment
  • Loss of quality of life.

Our Birmingham Premises Liability Attorney Can Explain Your Rights

If you or a family member has been seriously injured in a premises liability accident, you may be devastated and confused. Medical bills are adding up, your pay is cut, and you’re not sure about the future. Don’t be discouraged, take action!

The skilled legal professionals at The Wininger Law Firm have helped hundreds of other injured clients. They can help you, too. You shouldn’t bear the costs of your injuries, especially if they were caused by someone else. Find out how we can make the law work for you. Call a Birmingham premises liability lawyer today at 205-322-3663. The initial phone call is free.

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