personal injury
negligent security
Property owners and landlords owe visitors, tenants, and customers a duty to provide reasonable security on their property. When they fail to meet this duty and someone is hurt in a crime such as theft, rape, or assault, they can be held legally responsible. If you or someone you love has been injured in a violent crime on someone else’s property and you believe negligent security was the cause, you may have a claim against the property owner.
GMV Law Group, LLP represents injury victims in claims of negligent security and premises liability.
what is negligent security?
Property owners, managers, and landlords are all duty bound under Florida law to provide you with a reasonable level of security when living on or visiting their property. Should you become a victim of theft, vandalism, assault, rape, or another violent attack while on their property, and you believe that it was resulting from poor and inadequate security, you may have a claim against the property owner.
Florida’s premises liability law stipulates that should someone fall victim to a crime while on someone else’s property, be it an apartment building or condo, a restaurant, retail store, or hotel, the owner of the property may be held liable if they owed the victim a duty of care, and they subsequently breached that duty of care.
common types of negligent security cases
There are various ways in which negligent security could lead to an injury claim. A few commonly found examples of negligent security cases include:
- Inadequate locks on windows or doors
- A negligent security guard or guards
- Inadequately trained staff
- Poorly lit stairs, hallways or parking lots
- Security cameras or alarms that don’t work
- A failure to correctly monitor any security cameras
- A failure to correctly respond to emergencies
- Holes in fences or another insufficient perimeter protection
proving a negligent security claim
In order to prove a negligent security claim is valid, it must be proven that the four parts of a tort exist. A tort is a legal term for a civil wrongdoing, so you will need to prove that a civil wrongdoing, i.e. a negligent, reckless act caused your injury in these four steps:
- Duty of care: Poor maintenance or defects in handrails, staircases, and ramps can be a tripping hazard as well as steeper-than-average slopes or unstable surfaces.
- Breach of duty: The defendant is found to have breached their legal duty of care if they have been found to a), have that legal duty of care and b), not acted in an expected and reasonable manner. In the example of a negligent security claim, this means showing how the premises owner neglected to adequately secure their property, especially if they were aware of the problem and the risk it could pose.
- Injury and the cause of the injury: This is a fairly straightforward element. You must prove that you sustained an injury, and that the defendant’s negligence was the cause.
- Damages: For the majority of cases, the plaintiff will be required to show the financial cost of the injury, including lost wages and medical bills, along with any physical and mental cost caused by the pain and suffering.
how a negligent security injury attorney can help
A personal injury attorney can protect your legal rights and help you seek the compensation you deserve by:
- Creating a strategy for your case
- Working alongside you to investigate the property with security experts
- Assembling any relevant information for your case, and ensuring the details of your accident and evidence are thoroughly documented
- Negotiate on your behalf to pursue the maximum compensation you deserve from all possible sources
If you have been injured on someone else’s property and you believe insufficient security contributed to your accident, it’s important to speak with an experienced negligent security lawyer in Florida as soon as possible to protect your legal rights. Contact GMV Law Group, LLP to schedule your free consultation with a personal injury lawyer to review your claim and explore legal options. We have English and Spanish speaking representatives ready to help.
