California property owners have a duty to ensure the safety and security of their guests, tenants, and visitors. Under California’s premises liability laws, property owners must take necessary actions to keep unsuspecting patrons reasonably safe from harm. When a property owner or employer fails to remove or address potential hazards or dangers, the resulting injuries can be tragic. Victims of premises liability accidents may be able to file a claim against the property owners responsible for their injuries. To schedule a free legal consultation on your case, contact the Ventura premises liability lawyers at Law Offices of Bamieh and De Smeth today at (805) 643-5555.
Suing for Premises Liability in California
To prove that the property owner was liable for your injuries, you must prove that they knew about the dangers and failed to repair them or warn you about the injuries. Property owners are expected to keep close watch over their property, and many obvious dangers are things that even an absentee landlord should have checked out and repaired. Property owners owe different legal duties to different types of visitors to their property. With trespassers, they may be required only to prevent intentionally harming them. For social guests and business invitees, the duties may be stronger. The primary duty that property owners owe many guests to their property is the duty to warn about hidden dangers or repair the dangers so they cannot harm people.
Warning signs, such as yellow “wet floor” signs or “high voltage” notices help to keep people safe, but proactive landlords may also repair or replace dangerous fixtures on the property.
If a landowner did not fix or warn about the issue, and you were injured because of the dangerous conditions, you may be entitled to sue. When you file in court for these kinds of premises liability cases, the judge and jury can order the property owner to pay you for any damages you suffered because of the accident.
