When you patronize a store, walk back to your parked car, stay at a hotel, or fill up your tank at a gas station, you have the right to a reasonable expectation of safety. However, if the owner of the property allows negligent security practices, they can be found liable if you are injured as a result of their failure to uphold a secure environment.
The personal injury attorneys of Keller, Melchiorre & Walsh have spent more than a decade establishing a reputation as tough litigators who can be relied on for expert legal advice and dutiful service. We have guided many people through the process of filing negligent security lawsuits to reclaim the costs of medical bills, lost wages, property damage, and emotional distress stemming from their injuries.
Our strong background in trial law means our Tampa negligent security lawyers will not hesitate to take your lawsuit to court in the event that settlement negotiations are proving unfruitful rather than suggesting you accept an inadequate settlement. With a history of success at trial, insurance companies will know we are a force to be reckoned with and take our negotiations seriously.
We know that being accosted as a result of a property owner’s negligent security can have devastating ramifications for your financial and physical health, as well as your peace of mind. KMW Legal provides prospective clients with a free strategy session with our capable team to discuss the specifics of your negligent security lawsuit and learn about the services we offer.
Negligent security lawsuits fall under the category of premises liability. The owner of a property has a duty to the people who use their grounds to provide some level of protection and warning about potential threats from third parties. This may include installing security cameras and ensuring that parking areas are well-lit.
When a person is robbed, injured, or sexually assaulted on their property and a property owner failed to take action or took improper action when knowledge of a threat was apparent, then they may potentially be held liable.
Owners of businesses or properties in areas that have higher crime rates or pose an increased threat to visitors, like convenience stores, may be required to equip their premises with more security measures to compensate for the heightened risk of injury or property damage. When property owners fail to fulfill this responsibility, a Tampa attorney may be able to hold a property owner liable for damages in a negligent security lawsuit.
Negligent security lawsuits rest on two fundamental conditions. First, the plaintiff must be able to demonstrate that the injury was foreseeable by the defendant, meaning that it is reasonable to expect that the property owner could have predicted or anticipated the situation which resulted in the injury.
Second, the link between the direct or proximate cause of injury and the foreseeability of that event occurring must withstand scrutiny. Simply put, the property owner’s negligence must also be connected to the harm you or a loved one have suffered that has resulted in a meaningful loss of property, health, or money.
Property owners may have a different degree of exposure in a lawsuit depending on how the victim entered their property. Florida premises liability law describes several categories of visitors and how their status impacts the property owner’s liability should they be injured. For example, property owners are alleviated from their civil liability for security duties to trespassers over the legal blood alcohol concentration, nor do they have to warn undiscovered trespassers of potential hazards.
A practiced negligent security attorney in Tampa will be able to help you craft a case that establishes that the property owner had an obligation to proactively intervene to reduce the risk of foreseeable harm.
For example, a hotel has been experiencing several car break-ins over the past few weeks. Naturally, they would be expected to take measures to help prevent this obvious threat from repeating, which may include hiring security personnel to keep watch or creating barriers to prevent people other than hotel guests and staff from reaching vehicles. If the hotel fails to do anything about this and you get attacked when someone tries to break into your car, then the hotel’s lack of measures taken could be considered negligent, and they would be liable for the damages you suffered.
In the negligent security lawsuit, the Tampa attorney for the plaintiff could pursue compensatory damages for the cost of medical treatment, lost wages incurred during recovery, and emotional trauma from being attacked.
Just because you were robbed or assaulted on someone’s property, it does not mean that you are able to sue for negligent security. Property owners are expected to take reasonable measures to keep people on their property safe.
If there is nothing they could have done within reason to prevent something, then they cannot be held liable. A property owner can put up security cameras and lights, hire security, and place certain barriers, but there are many cases where criminals still proceed with their illegal activities regardless.
An attack in a poorly lit parking lot can leave you with head trauma, lacerations, and broken bones. You may have also had your wallet stolen or been sexually assaulted. The entire experience can have a long-lasting psychological impact and evolve into a profound economic hardship, especially if your ability to work is compromised.
In a civil court, you can recover the cost of these expenses from the negligent property owner who failed to replace a broken gate that would have otherwise protected you from an intruder or failed to properly vet and train a security guard to respond to your emergency.
It is important to bear in mind that in Florida, injury cases must be filed within 4 years of the incident or within 2 years if the plaintiff is seeking damages for wrongful death. It can be easy to get caught up in the process of physical recovery, the stress of unexpected financial burdens, and the responsibilities of everyday life.
However, you risk losing the ability to pursue damages for a negligent security claim if you fail to observe deadlines. A skilled Tampa attorney can assist you in navigating the legal jargon and paperwork that accompanies a negligent security lawsuit to ensure that you have to opportunity to secure a fair settlement.
If you have been attacked, assaulted, or robbed in a parking garage or outside a store, you may think that the perpetrator is the only party who can be held accountable for your injuries. This is not the case. The negligent property owners where the incident occurred may also be liable for damages if they were aware that there was a significant risk of danger to their patrons and they failed to take appropriate measures.
You need a Tampa attorney who has experience investigating negligent security claims, as their expertise will be necessary to establish the presence of a threat and a pattern of neglect by the property owner. In 2019, our own Chris Keller recovered $110,000 in damages for a client who was the victim of negligent security practices, and our lawyers have helped many more clients recover fair settlements.
KMW Legal is familiar with the complicated laws governing premises liability and negligent security, and we won’t relent until we are satisfied that your claim is being properly compensated.
Our team will engage security experts to testify to the dangerous conditions that led to your injury, examine the premise where the incident occurred to document lapses in security as soon as possible and represent your position in any negotiation room we walk into to seek satisfactory damages.
With a population of 387,916 people, Tampa is the largest city in Hillsborough County and home to the offices of KMW law. Our lawyers have been assisting the people of Tampa for over a decade now with lawsuits involving negligent security and can help you as well with holding negligent property owners accountable.
We have had significant success in negotiating satisfactory yet fair settlements in premises liability claims and have developed a long history of case results to prove it. KMW Law is invested not just in our client’s claims but in making Tampa safer through litigation.
When you hire an attorney to handle a lawsuit that may determine your family’s future, you want to feel confident that they come highly recommended. KMW Legal’s team is recognized by our peers for our aggressive pursuit of accountability in personal injury law.
Our clients can also testify to our commendable record of service based on our dependability, diligence, and work ethic, which sets us apart from other personal injury law firms. We have years of experience with negligent security lawsuits that have proven our ability to demonstrate the link between a property owner’s failure to establish safe conditions and the devastating injuries and financial burdens unfairly thrust upon our clients.
Our history of successful settlements verifies our ability to perform under pressure and secure you the compensation you deserve. Contact our office anytime to request a free strategy session with KMW Legal’s top-notch team. A Tampa negligent security lawyer will review your legal options and help you establish a strong negligent security claim.
