Slip and fall accidents are among the most common causes of injuries. They happen in restaurants, on streets, and in apartments or other rentals. Unfortunately, many of these cases, particularly when it happens to tenants, go unreported because people do not fully understand their rights.
While not all slip and fall accidents are the fault of the owner, premises owners and sometimes management companies have a duty to maintain a their property in a safe condition for both tenants and guest. When these duties are violated, it is possible for an injured tenant or guest to hold the owner liable for a slip and fall accident and the injuries they sustained.
In this article, we will further discuss slip and fall events that occur at rental properties and when a landlord is liable for the injuries that result. If you have questions after reading and need help with a slip and fall accident case as a tenant, our Kentucky premises liability lawyers can help.
Common Causes of Slip and Falls at Apartment Complexes
There are many reasons why a person might slip and fall at an apartment complex or any other type of rental property. To understand when an owner is liable, you need to first understand the basic rules.
In Kentucky, a premises owner is generally liable for injuries resulting from a dangerous condition or activity that exists on their property. They have a duty to warn of or eliminate such conditions if they reasonably would have known of the conditions existence. Kentucky law “shifts the burden” from the injured party to the premises owner if they can establish that the injury resulted in a dangerous condition or foreign substance located on the property. Once the burden shifts, the property owner can only avoid fault if they can prove that they acted reasonably to discovery and warn/eliminate the problem.
Apartments and rental units have some specific rules. First, you need to know what the lease agreement says with respect to the duties of the parties. That can have a direct impact on who will be liable. Secondly, where the injury occurs on the property is extremely important. If the injury occurs inside of the apartment, the owner may not have had any way of knowing about the condition. If it occurs in a “common area” however, the law typically requires that the property owner is responsible for inspecting for and repairing conditions that could cause injury.
Some of the most common causes of slip and falls in these cases include:
- Broken steps
- Broken or missing handrails
- Uneven surfaces
- Poor lighting in stairwells
- Worn out carpeting
- Defective sidewalks
- Icy stairs and sidewalks
- Loose floorboards
- Parking lot potholes
Kentucky Premises Liability Law and Apartment Slip and Fall Cases
Kentucky premises liability and landlord responsibility laws require landlords to follow all building and housing codes concerning health and safety. They are also required to make all repairs as needed to maintain a safe premise and keep it habitable for tenants.
Under these laws, there are essentially two situations when a landlord can be held liable for a slip and fall accident:
- The slip and fall occurred in a common area over which the landlord had complete control.
- In the tenant’s rental unit, but ONLY if the landlord was made aware of the dangerous condition and failed to address it in a reasonable amount of time.
So, let’s say you are retrieving your mail from the mailroom, which is a common area, and you slip and fall on ice that accumulated outside of the mailroom. If the landlord had a reasonable amount of time to know about the ice but failed to try to warn you or mitigate the problem, you could potentially hold them liable in this case for the injuries – medical bills, lost wages, pain and suffering, ect. .
Another example would be if you have broken floorboards in your rental unit and you made your landlord aware of this issue, but they failed to have it fixed in a timely manner. If you or someone at your home is injured because of the floor, then you (or the injured person) likely has grounds to file a claim against the property owner.
Holding a Landlord Liable for a Slip and Fall Accident in Kentucky
If you slip and fall and have the right to hold your landlord liable, it’s important to understand that you still need to prove that the landlord was negligent. In other words, you need evidence to support your claim.
In these cases, there are four things you need to prove to hold your landlord liable:
- A dangerous condition existed on the rental property.
- Your landlord knew or should have known about the dangerous condition.
- Your landlord failed to address the dangerous condition in a reasonable amount of time.
- Your slip and fall injury was caused by this dangerous condition.
Proving these things is not always easy, which is why it is beneficial to work with a slip and fall accident lawyer. A lawyer can establish your rights and help you obtain the evidence needed to prove that your landlord was negligent.
How Much Are Apartment Slip and Fall Settlements Worth?
Most landlords will have premises liability insurance in case someone is injured on the property. Reaching an insurance companies is only a small part of the battle. You still must prove that your landlord was negligent, and even then, their insurance company could deny that the landlord is responsible or try to offer you a substantially reduced settlement.
Full and fair damages that you can recover from a slip and fall injury include:
- Medical expenses for your injuries
- Future medical care
- Income lost while recovering from your injuries
- Future income loss
- Disability if the injuries you suffered caused you to become impaired
- Past and future pain and suffering
As these damages can vary from one case to the next, there is no average amount awarded for apartment slip and fall settlements. Instead, your attorney will carefully evaluate your situation and help you provide evidence to prove how much you should be awarded.
Trust McCoy & Sparks—Premier Slip and Fall Accident Lawyers in Central Kentucky
Proving fault and holding landlords responsible for a slip and fall accident can be challenging, but it is not impossible as long as you have an experienced attorney on your side. If you are injured on your rental property in a slip and fall accident, the team at McCoy & Sparks will fight hard to advocate for your rights to ensure you receive the compensation you deserve.
You owe us nothing unless we recover compensation for you. Make the right call to (844) 4KY-WINS for a risk-free consultation with one of our attorneys today.