Keep Your Commercial Property Safe From Premises Liability Claims
No matter what business you are in, small business owners needs to prepare for risks that will affect the bottom line.
One concern is the potential threat of premises liability lawsuits.
Accidents can happen, though many are preventable. When an accident occurs business owners need to do all they can to assure that they are not at fault due to their own negligence.
Business owners themselves can start by implementing safety policies and additional procedures pertaining to inspection and maintenance of your property to make it possible to prevent injuries on your premises. However, protecting your bottom line doesn’t end there. You must also take into consideration ways to minimize the financial impact of personal injury lawsuits.
Are You Covered?
Typically employees will be covered for their injuries by your worker’s compensation policy. However, lawsuits filed by visitors, clients, or vendors
that are injured in an accident can be costly not only in compensation but in representation and to your reputation. To protect yourself financially, make sure you set up a meeting with your insurance agent and purchases all types of insurance to protect against the risks that exist on your property.
Why Carry Premises Liability?
Business premises liability law overall is designed to protect customers, vendors, and even trespassers to some extent. As a business owner it is your responsibility to ensure the safety of ANY individual who chooses to visit your place of business.
Understanding a Premises Liability Lawsuit
The most common accident business owner’s face is known as a slip and fall.
The attorney in these types of cases will be representing an individual who experienced a slip or trip and fall at your business and they feel that the business owner is liable. Some of the situations where negligence can be identified are in accidents relating from dangerous conditions such as wet floors, inadequate lighting, torn or loose carpeting, cluttered aisles in stores, etc. You could also face a lawsuit for an accident with injuries that had occurred on the outside of your business. This could happen as visitors approach your business and slip/ fall in the parking area due to danger areas created by freezing rain, ice or snow, or other hazards that can include a fall due to cracked walkway or parking lot.
