Is Your Landlord Liable for Your Injury?

When we think of personal injury law, most of us think of cases involving what’s called “premises liability.” Premises liability cases are those in which someone is injured as the result of an accident on someone else’s property. In cities, though, almost everyone lives on someone else’s property. If you’re injured at home in your apartment, is your landlord liable? “It’s not that simple,” says Peter Briskin of Fishbeyn & Briskin, P.C. in New York and New Jersey. “Whether your landlord is responsible for your accident depends, with a few exceptions, on whether you were injured in your apartment or in a common area of your building.”

Injuries in Your Apartment

According to Briskin, in an apartment situation, the tenant is responsible for his own space. That is, in a broad sense, he is most likely liable for any accident that occurs within his own apartment. However, Briskin says, there are certainly exceptions.

“If you’ve detected an unsafe situation and requested a repair,” he explains, “and that situation isn’t promptly remedied, your landlord may bear some or all of the responsibility for an injury that occurs as a result of that situation.” Briskin cites an example of a tenant who has noticed a leak in an exterior wall that is accompanied by stains and a foul odor, which suggest mold growth. The tenant will need to report the leak to his landlord, who will take responsibility for ensuring that the leak is thoroughly and properly repaired. If, however, the leak is improperly repaired and mold is allowed to remain and grow in the wall, the tenant may have a case against the landlord should he develop a mold-related health condition later on.

“As long as the tenant has notified the landlord,” says Briskin, “and the landlord has failed to correct an unsafe situation, the tenant should not be liable for illness or injury that occurs as a result of that situation.”

Injuries in Common Areas

Briskin says that injuries occurring in common areas of residential buildings like lobbies, stairwells and courtyards are more straightforward. “If your accident occurs in a common area,” he says, “it doesn’t matter whether you’re a tenant in that building or not. If a defect is present that the property owner should have known about and fixed, he should be held responsible.” However, says Briskin, if you’re a long-term resident of a building where there’s a defect you’re likely aware of (such as a broken step), you may bear a portion of the responsibility for your own accident if it’s related to that defect.

“Yes, the landlord may be liable for the broken step,” says Briskin, “but maybe not 100% liable for your injury. If you live in the building and suddenly trip over a step you know has been broken for three years, the argument can be made that not only should the landlord have fixed the step, but you also should have been more careful.”

Contacting an Attorney

If you’re injured in your own apartment building, Briskin says it’s important to get yourself an attorney right away. Your attorney will launch an investigation into the causes of your accident in order to determine whether someone else is legally liable. In premises liability cases, determining liability involves proving that a defect is present that caused your accident. Broken steps, uneven sidewalks or unmarked wet floors are all examples of defects that could contribute to a serious injury.

“Regardless of the nature of your injury, if there’s a chance that someone else is responsible, you absolutely need to have an attorney working on your side,” says Briskin. “Injuries can become very expensive very quickly. The sooner you involve an attorney in your case, the sooner you may be able to recover some of your accident-related costs.”