Is A Landlord Liable For a Tenant’s Slip and Fall Accident?

If you are renting a home or apartment, you are required to pay a sum of money to your landlord every month. In exchange for this rent, the landlord is required to keep your home or apartment free from dangerous conditions that could seriously injure you. One of the most common accidents that can occur on a rental property is a slip and fall. If you’ve been injured in a slip and fall accident, can you hold your landlord liable for your injuries? In some cases, yes.

Proving Negligence

Landlords will not be held liable for every accident that occurs on their property. In order to prove the landlord is at fault for your injuries, you have to be able to prove negligence. To put it simply, you must be able to show the landlord either created the unsafe conditions that led to your slip and fall or knew about the hazard, but did nothing to remedy the situation.

Under certain circumstances, the landlord can be held liable even if he was not aware of the unsafe conditions. If the plaintiff can prove that a “reasonable” landlord would have known about the conditions, then the plaintiff’s landlord may be held liable for the slip and fall accident.

Examples of Negligence

To get a better understanding of the legal concept of negligence, consider these examples. Let’s say your rental home has a leak in the roof, and water is beginning to puddle inside your home as a result. You tell your landlord about the leak, and he acknowledges that it needs to be fixed, but does not take immediate action to do so. If you slip on the water and injure yourself, the landlord may be liable for your injuries because he knew of the hazardous condition. However, if you did not tell him about the leak prior to your injury, it will be very difficult proving that the landlord was negligent.

Check the Lease

Landlords will outline the tenants’ responsibilities in the lease, so it’s important to refer to this document if you are questioning whether your landlord should be held liable for your injuries. For example, if you slip on a patch of ice on the sidewalk leading up to your home, you may want to hold your landlord accountable because he did not remove the ice from the walkway. However, your lease may state that it is your responsibility to take care of any snow or ice that accumulates on the walkway up to your door. In this case, the landlord would not be responsible for the condition that caused your injury.

Proving liability in a slip and fall case can be complex, which is why you will need legal representation from an experienced personal injury attorney. Contact James Rush at Rush Injury Law today to discuss your legal options in greater detail. To schedule a consultation with James Rush, call 415-897-4801 or fill out the online form on our website www.rushinjurylaw.com .