What is a businesses liability for customer injuries?
If you slip, fall, or are otherwise injured in a store, you may have a valid legal claim against that business. Here’s why: Businesses that welcome the public onto their premises have a legal duty to keep them “reasonably” safe.
Whether it’s a “big box” nationwide chain like Walmart or Target, a grocery chain like Kroger, Albertsons or Safeway, or a local independent retailer, any business that invites the public onto its premises is obligated to take certain steps to keep customers out of harm’s way. Customers who are injured in slip and fall accidents on store premises may have a valid legal claim against the business, but the case may not always be a smooth one. This article looks at slip and fall claims against common types of retailers, and key issues to consider.
Duty to Maintain Safe Premises
Like all businesses that open themselves up to the public, stores are legally obligated to maintain reasonably safe premises for the protection of their customers. When a slip and fall accident happens at a department store, grocery store, or even a local “mom and pop”, the business may be liable for injuries if it can be shown that the slip and fall occurred due to unsafe conditions on the property. The store’s responsibility for compensating a customer who slipped and fell often depends on the specific facts of the particular accident, but there are a few common conditions that lead to slip and fall accidents in stores.
Common In-Store Slip and Fall Accidents
Injuries from slip and falls at a store can happen for a variety of reasons. A customer might fall on an accumulation of snow or icein the entry way of the store or could trip over an errant floor mat. Items on display might be haphazardly placed and can fall in the pathway of a customer. The store might have poor lighting leading to poor visibility, or a prior customer’s spilled latte could have left a puddle in an aisle. The possibilities are endless, but regardless of the cause of the slip and fall accident, the legal responsibility of the store will depend on whether it had, or should have reasonably had, notice of the unsafe condition and failed to take prompt action to fix the problem.
If you or a loved one has suffered an injury at a place of business and you think that business may be liable please contact one of our attorneys at 843-720-3737