Premises Liability Attorney in Toms River

Toms River home and business owners must take reasonable steps to minimize the risk of harm to guests on their properties. If they fail to do so, and dangerous property conditions harm a guest, the owner can be legally liable for any injuries. If you have sustained injuries while visiting another’s property, a Toms River premises liability attorney from Brach Eichler Injury Lawyers can help. We can pursue a financial settlement against the liable landowner to recover money for your medical bills, lost work income, and other injury-related losses.

Contact us today or call (732) 716-7148 to speak to a personal injury attorney in Toms River.

Examples of Premises Liability Claims in Toms River

The term premises liability refers to landowners’ general legal duty to keep their properties in safe condition for guests. If a dangerous property hazard harms a guest, the landowner could be responsible for paying for the guest’s injuries. This responsibility extends not only to formal property owners but also to anyone directly in control of the property, like rental tenants, management companies, or business owners.

Below are some examples of premises liability accidents where the property owner could be liable.

• A customer slips on a puddle after a store owner fails to put up a wet flooring sign after mopping.
• A houseguest falls into a construction hole in the backyard that the owner did not fence off.
• A pedestrian slips on an icy sidewalk outside a courthouse and injures their spinal cord.
• A landlord skips mandatory electrical inspections, and faulty electrical wiring burns a tenant.
• A hotel guest trips and falls in a stairwell because of insufficient lighting and a lack of handrails.
• A bar patron gets injured in an assault because the venue did not hire sufficient security.
• Unsecured construction tools fall off a scaffolding and strike a passerby in the head.

In all cases, the victim sustained harm because the owner did not take reasonable steps to secure their property. These steps could include removing hazards, inspecting for hidden risks, and posting notice of known dangers.

Legal Elements of Premises Liability Claims

Premises liability claims usually fall under the broader umbrella of negligence-based torts. These are claims that arise when one party fails to exercise a reasonable level of care and causes injury to another. Traditionally conceived, negligence claims have three core elements:

• Duty – The landowner owed the victim a duty of care.
• Breach – The landowner breached that duty of care.
• Causation – The breach caused the victim’s injuries.

It’s not enough that the injury happened on the owner’s property because of some hazard. Accidents happen, even when everyone does everything right. The owner must also specifically violate some standard of reasonable behavior, like not posting warnings. For instance, a business owner could be liable if they didn’t put up a wet floor sign after mopping and a customer slipped.

Note that negligence is not the standard for all types of premises liability claims. Dog bites, for instance, are a matter of strict liability in New Jersey, and victims do not have to prove negligence to recover damages (NJSA 4:19-16).

Duties of Care and Visitor Status in Premises Liability Cases

Property owners have a general duty of care to visitors, meaning they must make a reasonable effort to minimize their risk of harm. However, landowners don’t owe every visitor the same level of care. A visitor’s legal status determines how much effort property owners must expend to preserve their safety.

Invitees 

An invitee is a legal visitor on the property for commercial or transactional reasons, the most obvious example being a customer. Because landowners stand to materially benefit from invitees, they have the highest duty of care to them. A landowner’s duty of care to invitees includes fixing or posting warnings of known hazards and regularly inspecting for hidden defects.

Licensees

Licensees are visitors lawfully on the property for social and noncommercial reasons. Houseguests, like visiting family or friends, typically count as licensees. Property owners in Toms River must notify licensees about known defects but are not required to regularly inspect for hidden defects.

Trespassers

Trespassers are visitors who unlawfully enter the property without the owner’s permission. Landowners do not have a specific duty of care to trespassers, other than refraining from intentionally harming them (e.g., no booby traps). The main exception is for artificial property conditions that pose a unique risk to trespassing children. Landlords must secure so-called attractive nuisances (e.g., swimming pools, trampolines, etc.) to minimize the risk of harm to potential trespassing minors.

Compensation in Premises Liability Cases 

Compensation in premises liability claims can compensate you for your economic and noneconomic losses. Economic losses include losses with a specific dollar value, such as:

• Emergency medical bills and continuing medical expenses
• Lost employment income, including hourly pay/salary, bonuses, commission, tips, etc.
• Reduced lifetime earning capacity from disability or impairment
• Miscellaneous injury expenses, like childcare and transportation costs

An attorney from Brach Eichler Injury Lawyers can also pursue compensation for your intangible, noneconomic losses, such as:

• Pain and suffering
• Mental anguish
• Loss of convenience or enjoyment
• Scarring and disfigurement
• Loss of consortium

We understand that the scars of a serious injury run deep, and your mental anguish is deserving of compensation as well. We will leave no stone unturned as we investigate your claim to identify all liable parties and maximize your recoverable compensation.

Public Property in Premises Liability Accidents in Toms River

Many premises liability accidents happen on public, government-owned property. In these cases, the liable entity is the government, but the rules for suing the government differ from those for suing private individuals.

Most importantly, you must first provide a notice of claim before you can pursue legal action against a government employee or agency. A notice of claim must contain the claimant’s information, the amount of damages sought, and a description of the incident. You must file this notice within 90 days of the injury date, or else you could forever lose your ability to recover compensation from the government (NJSA 59:8-8).

Toms River Premises Liability FAQs

Below are some of the most common questions our clients ask about premises liability claims and negligent maintenance lawsuits. For more specific questions, contact Brach Eichler Injury Lawyers today to speak to a personal injury attorney.

What Are My Options If I Get Injured on Someone Else’s Property in Toms River? 

Your main option for financial recovery after a premises liability accident is filing a personal injury claim against the property owner’s liability coverage. Most homeowners and renters insurance policies have liability coverage that will pay for injuries that occur on the property. After the accident, you need to get the property owner’s insurance information to file a claim. Once you contact the insurance company, they will open your case and start investigating.

Can I Still File a Claim If I Didn’t Report the Injury Right Away?

Yes, you can still file a claim even if you do not report the injury right away. The ultimate legal time limit for all personal injury claims in New Jersey is two years (NJSA 2A:14-2). However, it is usually in your best interest to report your injury to the insurance company as soon as possible. The longer you wait to start, the harder it will be to secure your compensation. If you wait to report an injury, the insurance company might use that delay as a reason to claim your injuries are not serious.

How Do I Prove Liability If I Was Injured on Someone Else’s Property in Toms River?

In most premises liability cases, it is sufficient to show the landowner knew about a specific hazard and took no steps to remedy it. An attorney can appeal to several types of evidence to prove the landowner had actual notice of a danger, such as:

• Video recordings showing the presence of the hazard
• Written or audio communications showing their awareness
• Maintenance requests and reports
• Eyewitness or employee testimony
• Prior customer complaints or injuries

A landowner may also have constructive notice of a hazard – i.e., they should have known about it through reasonable diligence. Even if a landowner had no actual knowledge about a danger, they can still be liable if a reasonable individual in the same situation would have discovered it.

Brach Eichler Injury Lawyers: Holding Property Owners Accountable for Hazardous Property Conditions

Brach Eichler Injury Lawyers has been serving Toms River residents for decades with our unique brand of personable and effective legal services. We have extensive experience pursuing premises liability claims for injuries on both private and public property. Your injuries were not your fault, and the liable parties should be held accountable for their wrongdoing. We have the resources, skills, and knowledge to pursue your compensation to the fullest extent and seek justice for your harm.

Contact our office online or call today at (732) 716-7148 to schedule a free consultation with a personal injury attorney in Toms River. Let’s discuss your circumstances, what you need to be made whole again, and what our team can do to support you.