Restaurant and store owners invite the public to their premises. When customers come in, store and restaurant owners have an obligation to them. Premises liability laws determine the obligation the owners of the business have to customers. When a store or restaurant owner fails to maintain the premises in a safe way, customers can suffer a slip and fall or other injury. If the fall injury is linked to negligence, civil lawsuits may arise from restaurant and store accidents.
Business Owner Responsibilities to Prevent Restaurant and Store Accidents
The California Civil Jury Instructions provide information on the obligation of business owners to prevent restaurant and store accidents. In a civil lawsuit arising after an accident happens, a jury must determine if the store or restaurant operator was negligent. The jury instructions say: “A person who [owns/leases/occupies/controls] property is negligent if he or she fails to use reasonable care to keep the property in a reasonably safe condition.”
The person or business who owns or leases the property has to take reasonable steps to discover unsafe conditions and to either fix them or give warning. When deciding if the store owner was reasonable or negligent, a jury can consider the chances of harm; the chances someone would come on the property (which are high when the property is a restaurant or store); whether the owner or operator of the business knew or should have known of the risky condition; the likely severity of the harm; the difficulty of mitigating the risk; and the extent of the defendant’s control over the risk.
Many property injuries involve slip and falls, and most slip and falls are caused by things like cracks in flooring, uneven flooring, and slippery flooring. Store and restaurant owners can often easily see problems that would lead to a fall, and correcting or warning about these hazards often would not be difficult. As a result, there are many situations where restaurant and store accidents give rise to civil lawsuits for injury or death.
Taking Legal Action After Restaurant and Store Accidents
If you can prove you were hurt because of the failure of a restaurant or store owner to exercise reasonable care, you should be compensated for all losses caused by negligence. You can pursue claims not just for slip and falls, but also for negligent security or items falling on you.
The National Floor Safety Institute warns that injuries due to falls are the leading cause of accidental injury in the U.S., and that more than two million floor injuries annually happen because of problems with floors and flooring materials. The National Restaurant Association also cautions restaurant owners that expensive lawsuits can result when customers or employees fall.
Restaurants should be careful to keep pathways clear, use non-slip flooring surfaces, clean up spills, and warn customers. Too many restaurant and store owners fail to take these and other basic safety steps. When care is not taken to protect you as a customer, you should file a civil lawsuit so your damages will be covered by those whose carelessness caused you harm.
A Long Beach Lawyer Can Help After Restaurant and Store Accidents
I’v helped many clients who’ve suffered injuries in restaurant and store accidents after slip and falls. Let me put my legal experience to work to assist you in determining if you have a case and in making a claim for damages.
Call the Law Office of Michael D. Waks at 888-394-1174 or use the convenient online contact form to schedule a free consultation https://norsk-apotek.com. You are under no obligation and you will never pay any money unless you recover damages for your injuries. I offer bilingual services as part of my comprehensive approach to legal representation and I am available 24/7 to talk to you about your case.
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