It’s the responsibility of a business owner to keep their premises free from any potential hazardous situations that may cause an individual to get hurt. If they don’t, then they risk being sued for medical costs, lost wages and other expenses that either a customer or worker may accumulate because of their injuries.
Sidewalks are one of the places where customers or employees are most apt to get hurt. Some of the reasons that they slip and fall on them is because the pavement is uneven, they’re cluttered or snow or ice is not removed.
Most business owners realize that it’s their responsibility to remove ice or snow from the pedestrian areas adjacent to their buildings. What they often don’t realize, though, is that city ordinances may also require them to keep the sidewalks out in front of them clean as well, even if they don’t own them themselves. If they don’t, then this is one of the reasons that a business owner could easily be sued for someone’s injuries.
The same logic applies with the parking lots that belong to a company. If employees or customers are going to be leaving their vehicles there, then it’s in the business owner’s best interest to make sure that they fix the potholes, cracked asphalt and other potentially hazardous situations that could cause someone to get hurt or a vehicle to get damaged.
Finally, it’s important for all business owners to ensure that their facilities have adequate lighting both inside and out. Employees or customers often trip over something, slip on wet floors or fall down stairs within a store or facility because of poor lighting.
Outside, they may not see a curb or be accosted by someone hiding in the bushes because the dark makes for a perfect way for them not be seen. If injuries occur because of poor lighting, then you as the victim may be able to file lawsuit against the property or business owner to compensate for your injuries.
Proving that a business owner was negligent in maintaining their property is not always easy to do. What you were doing at the time in which you became hurt may impact your ability to hold another party accountable for your injuries as well. You’ll only want to entrust your case to a Chicago personal injury attorney that has a record of success in the handling of such matters.