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How Property Owners Are Held Accountable for Injuries Caused by Unsafe Staircases
Falling down a flight of stairs can lead to serious injuries, including broken bones, traumatic brain injuries, and spinal cord damage. These injuries can result in significant medical bills, lost wages, and long-term pain and suffering. If you're lawfully on someone else’s property, it's common to expect a certain level of safety. Unfortunately, injuries from falls on poorly maintained staircases happen far too often.
Since property owners have a responsibility to keep their premises safe, pursuing legal action can help hold them accountable when they fail to do so. Managing a personal injury claim alone can be challenging, but that’s where the services of a dedicated personal injury attorney comes in.
If you have been injured because of an unsafe staircase, our attorneys at Denning Law Firm, LLC can help. Our firm is built on a foundation of fearless representation and a commitment to fighting for the rights of the injured. We have the experience to stand up to property owners and their insurance companies to pursue the compensation you deserve and hold property owners accountable.
Understanding Premises Liability and Unsafe Staircases
Premises liability is the legal principle that holds property owners responsible for accidents and injuries that occur on their property. This responsibility, however, depends on why the injured person was on the property in the first place. Visitors are typically categorized as invitees, licensees, or trespassers.
An invitee is someone invited onto the property for the owner's benefit, such as a customer in a retail store. Property owners owe the highest duty of care to invitees. They must regularly inspect the property for hazards, repair them, and warn visitors of any hazards that cannot be fixed immediately.
A licensee is a social guest, such as a friend who is visiting for dinner. The property owner must warn licensees of known dangers, but does not have the same duty to inspect for unknown hazards. A trespasser is someone on the property without permission, and owners generally only owe them a duty not to cause intentional harm.
Common Types of Unsafe Staircases
There are various conditions that can ultimately make a staircase unsafe. Some of the most common hazards include the following:
Broken or loose steps
Missing or wobbly handrails
Poor or inadequate lighting
Uneven riser heights or tread depths
Worn or slippery surfaces
Objects or debris left on the stairs
Violations of building codes
If any of these conditions cause an injury, the property owner could be held liable for the resulting damages. To build a successful claim, you must demonstrate that the owner knew, or should have known, about the dangerous condition and failed to take reasonable steps to fix it or to warn you about it.
How to Prove Negligence in a Staircase Accident Claim
The core of any personal injury claim is proving negligence. If you or someone you know has been injured on an unsafe staircase, you will need to prove four key elements:
Duty of care: You must first establish that the property owner owed you a duty to maintain a reasonably safe environment. As mentioned, this duty varies based on your status as a visitor.
Breach of duty: Next, you will need to prove that the property owner breached this duty. This could mean that they failed to repair a broken handrail, didn't clean up a spill, or ignored a building code violation.
Causation: You must be able to connect the owner’s breach of duty directly to your injuries. In other words, you must prove that your fall and subsequent injuries would not have happened if not for the owner’s negligence.
Damages: Finally, you must prove that you suffered actual harm, which can include medical expenses, lost income, pain and suffering, and other related losses.
Gathering evidence is fundamental to proving these elements. This can include taking photographs of the hazardous staircase, getting contact information from any witnesses, documenting your injuries through medical records, and keeping a record of all related expenses. Our team will work diligently to help you collect and preserve the necessary evidence to build a strong case on your behalf.
Missouri Personal Injury Law
Missouri law follows a traditional premises liability framework. Property owners have a legal obligation to protect lawful visitors from foreseeable harm. This means that business and property owners must use reasonable care to discover dangerous conditions and either repair them or provide an adequate warning to guests on their premises.
Missouri also follows a "pure comparative fault" rule. This means that if you are found to be partially at fault for your own injuries, your compensation can be reduced by your percentage of fault. For example, if you were awarded $100,000 but found to be 20% responsible for the accident, your award would be reduced to $80,000. Insurance companies often try to shift blame onto the victim to reduce their payout, which is why having strong legal representation is so important.
Kansas Personal Injury Law
Kansas also holds property owners accountable for injuries caused by unsafe conditions. Like Missouri, Kansas law requires property owners to exercise reasonable care to keep their premises safe for invitees. This includes inspecting the property for hazards, making necessary repairs, and warning visitors of any potential dangers.
However, Kansas uses a "modified comparative fault" rule. Under this system, you can only recover damages if you are found to be less than 50% at fault for the accident. If your share of the fault is determined to be 50% or more, you are barred from recovering any compensation at all. This makes it even more critical to have a skilled attorney who can effectively argue against any attempts to place undue blame on you for the incident.
Personal Accident Attorneys Serving Missouri and Kansas
Have you or someone you know been injured on an unsafe staircase? You may be entitled to compensation. At Denning Law Firm, LLC, we are experienced in handling premises liability cases and holding property owners accountable for the actions or inaction.
If you are looking for fearless representation that does not take the easy way out, you have come to the right place. Call our office today to schedule a consultation with a personal injury attorney. Located in Overland Park, Kansas, we serve clients throughout the Kansas City metro area.