In order for a tenant’s personal injury suit against the landlord to resolve successfully, the landlord’s actions need to be proven as the foreseeable cause of injury or damages.
Landlords will not naturally be liable for the injuries their tenants suffer and in general, a landlord is responsible for the injuries only when their carelessness or failure to act contributed to the injury.
Proving Negligence
The legal concept of negligence is often cited in these cases. The approximate cause of a tenant injury as well as the liability towards the injury, come down to proving negligence. A landlord likely does not intend any type of harm during a failure to act but the cause of an injury often comes down to determining when the landlord was negligent. Some of the main signs that a landlord may have acted in negligence include:
Knowledge of a hidden danger: when nerds need to notify their tenants about various dangerous conditions on sites such as an uneven basement, poor stair construction, and more.
Foreseeability of an accident: if the landlord knew that there could have been an accident such as from an aspect of the property that has fallen into disrepair, the landlord could be held responsible. A freak accident such as the chance that a person fell through a floorboard is separate but if the landlord knew about a weekend portion of the floor, this could be evidence of negligence.
Evidence of cost and feasibility issues: if the landlord ignored a major repair such as a shifting foundation due to feasibility, this could be a true sign of negligence.
Failure to prevent accidents on site: the law does not require a landlord to immediately protect tenants by removing all danger from the site but reasonable care is required for any competent landlord. If a landlord ignored a broken porch for many months or has not done a property site visit in years, this can be evidence of negligence.
Comparative Fault
In some instances, the court will assign a percentage of responsibility to each party for the accident. 55% of the fault for a tripping tenant may be to the tenant themselves were as 45% could be falling onto the landlord if there was a failure to complete repairs.
If you feel as though your landlord was negligent in an incident that caused you or a guest an accident and or injury, contact us today for representation.
This post was written by Kelly-Ann Jenkins of Jenkins Law P.L. Kelly-Ann is an insurance claim Lawyer. The information on this site is not intended to and does not offer legal advice, legal recommendations or legal representation on any matter. Hiring an attorney is an important decision, which should not be based on advertising. You need to consult an attorney for legal advice regarding your individual situation.
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