Premises Liability Attorney in Indianapolis, IN

When you go to an event or want to spend a fun day at a park, you’re most likely operating under the assumption that those in charge have made the effort to ensure your safety. You want to enjoy your time, so when there is a hazard, it’s expected that you will be made aware. Unfortunately, it is sometimes the case that a property owner has not taken the correct steps to protect you—a visitor—on their property. The result? An accident that leads to injury. 

If you have been injured on someone else’s property because of another party’s negligence, contact your Indianapolis premises liability lawyer at Wilson Kehoe Winingham today.  Your safety should come first. When it doesn’t, the person responsible should be held accountable. WKW is here to help you get the compensation that you deserve. On this page, you’ll learn everything you need to know about premise liability. 

Premises Liability Definition

A premises liability claim arises when a visitor or tenant of a property is injured due to the misconduct or negligence of the property’s owner. If you have suffered an injury that you believe may be due to the negligence of the property owner, you may be entitled to damages to compensate you for your injury and treatment, as well as the emotional suffering and financial loss you have incurred.

Types of Premises Liability Claims

Premises liability claims can encompass a wide variety of injuries, including:

• Slip and fall accidents
• Dog or animal bites
• Exposure to toxic or hazardous substances, such as lead, mold, or asbestos
• Dangerous equipment or machinery
• Falling objects
• Fires and explosions
• Failure to mark or identify hazardous conditions

What Is Premises Liability Law In Indiana?

Indiana premises liability law is considered a shared fault. This means that, under the premise liability definition in Indiana, if you are 50% responsible or less for your injury, then you are allowed to pursue a premise liability claim. 

Why is shared fault in premise liability law so complicated? Because you need to prove that you are 50% or less liable for the damage that you have sustained. Talk to your WKW Indianapolis premises liability lawyer so we can build your case and to hold the responsible person accountable. 

Our experienced attorneys can help make the case that you are not the one responsible for what happened. 

WKW also has the resources available to fight big companies. If you are injured on a large company’s property, they may fight hard to avoid responsibility. Talk to your premises liability attorney so we can help you get justice. 

Who Can Make a Premises Liability Claim?

When making a premises liability claim in Indiana, you will fall into one of three categories. Your status—meaning your relationship with the owner and property at the time of the incident—will determine how to further pursue your premises liability claim. 

There are three main categories that a plaintiff can be separated into:

1. Invitee
2. Licensee
3. Trespasser

Invitee is further separated into three subcategories. Let’s look more closely at the three different categories that will help determine the outcome of your premises claim.

Invitee

An invitee is a person who is actually invited onto the premises, either a private residence or a commercial building or property. An invitee can be further classified into the following subcategories.

1. Public invitee: A public invitee includes someone visiting a public property, like a community center or a park. 
2. Social invitee: This is a person who has been invited onto a residential property by the property owner. This would include being invited to a birthday or pool party by the host. 
3. Business invitee: This is when someone is invited to a business occasion for the purpose of a financial benefit for the owner. This invitation does not have to be personal; it can be a patron to a restaurant or a concertgoer. This can also include a business like an amusement park. If you are injured at a theme or amusement park, do not hesitate to call your premises liability attorney right away. Read more about the danger of amusement parks here.

The host and/or owner has the responsibility to act reasonably to keep you, the invitee, safe while you are on their property. 

If you’re wondering when property owners are liable for slip and fall injuries, find out more here.

Licensee

A licensee is a person who is on another party’s property for their own benefit, yet still has permission to be on that property. 

The main difference between invitee vs. licensee is the physical act of invitation. A licensee may not be invited onto the premises, but still have the right to be on the property, which can be communicated through word, speech, or implication. 

A licensee could be a person who uses their neighbor’s trampoline in their yard because they told you that you could. In these cases, the property owner may still be at fault, as they need to avoid causing harm or having a property that does under many circumstances.

Trespasser

A trespasser is a person who is (1) on a property that does not belong to them and (2) does not have permission to be on said property. 

Although a person is trespassing, the property owner still cannot intentionally hurt or injure the trespasser.

Minor Trespassers 

In Indiana, minor trespassers are treated differently than adults. A child who trespasses on a property in Indiana may get injured; in these cases, the property owner can still be held liable. This does depend on the injury and situation. These types of cases can get complicated, particularly if a pool or animal bite is involved. 

If your child has been injured while trespassing on someone else’s property, contact your Indianapolis premises liability lawyer at WKW. We can discuss options for pursuing a premises liability case. Call your WKW premises liability lawyer before calling your premises liability insurance carrier. 

What Is a Premises Liability Lawsuit: Making a Premise Liability Claim

Once you’ve established your role/status as the injured party, talk with your premises liability attorney about the factors involved in actually making a claim. 

There are two main factors that contribute to a personal injury claim.

• Negligence: The losses and damages that you have suffered need to be a direct result of the property owner’s negligence (or responsible party, such as the government on public property). The cause has to be the result of disregard for your safety.
• Losses: You have to have suffered some sort of loss or damage. This can look different in different scenarios. For example, loss of quality of life can count as pain and suffering, but you also could have suffered a traumatic brain injury (TBI) from a slip and fall. Premises liability injuries can range from a broken bone to an internal bleed that causes major trauma. Talk with us to see what compensation options are available for your claim. 

Sustaining minor injuries may not be included in losses. However, before you assume your injury is too small to pursue a claim, discuss the injury and circumstances with your WKW premises liability lawyer. We can help you determine if your injury legally makes you eligible to pursue a premises liability lawsuit. 

Learn more about premises liability claim eligibility by clicking here. 

Pursuing a Claim After Injury on Public Property

We often get the question: “What if you’re hurt on public property?” First, you need to be able to identify the people and companies involved. 

Public property claims may involve individual people who were careless in the moment, a manufacturing company that released a dangerous product, a government entity that should have alerted the public of danger, and more. As you can see, pursuing a claim is not as easy as just blaming a business owner. It includes carefully evaluating the accident’s scene and details.

To help determine who is responsible for your injuries, contact your Indianapolis premises liability lawyer at WKW. We can help you identify who and what caused your losses and hold the negligent party responsible. 

Types of Premises Liability Compensation 

When you are injured because of a property owner’s negligence, you may have the right to pursue compensation for your injuries.

As discussed above, the kind of compensation you seek will depend on the losses you have sustained.  The most common damages that can be recovered from premise liability claims are:

• Medical bills that include transportation costs to the hospital, rehabilitation, follow-up doctor’s visits, medication related to your injury, and medical equipment.
• Loss of income is intended to recover lost income you could have earned had you been able to work. If you have been so injured that you could not return to work, you can pursue loss of income compensation.
• Pain and suffering is a type of compensation for your personal wellbeing. When you are injured because of another party’s negligence, physical pain is not the only suffering you might endure. Loss of quality of life, changes to your mental and emotional wellbeing, and your reliance on others may look different as the result of your injury. 

These are a few examples of compensation you may be entitled to. Though money cannot undo the negligent actions of the person responsible, it can alleviate some of the stress that accompanies an accident. 

If you have been injured because of another party’s negligence, contact your Indiana premises liability lawyer at WKW right away. We can discuss options for seeking compensation and recovering losses. We want you to be able to focus on your recovery. Together, we can hold the person or entity responsible for your losses accountable for their actions. 

Proving Premises Liability Cases

In cases involving premises liability, plaintiffs must show one or more of the following:

• Property owner failed to properly maintain the property.
• Property owner created unsafe conditions that caused the injury.
• Property owner had previous knowledge about the unsafe hazard but failed to alert visitors or tenants to the condition.
• Property owner was not adequately diligent in addressing unsafe conditions that might attract children.
• Property owner took actions or neglected conditions that caused damage to a neighboring property.

Time Frame to Contact Your Premises Liability Attorney

Premises liability claims can be quite varied depending on their unique circumstances. Your claim will depend on what happened and your status (invitee, licensee, or trespasser). Before you contact your premises liability lawyer, you should first understand the premises liability claim statute of limitations.

The statute of limitations is how long you have to pursue a claim. In Indiana, it is most likely that you will have two years from the date of the accident/incident to file a premises liability claim. 

To clarify, this is not the time in which your claim or lawsuit concludes. It is simply the deadline for actually filing your claim. That being said, building a strong case does take time, so contact your WKW premises liability lawyer as soon as possible so that we can start collecting evidence and building a strong case. We want to get you the maximum amount of compensation you deserve. 

Contact a Premises Liability Attorney Today

If you or a loved one have been injured due to a property owner’s negligence, we urge you to contact the Indianapolis premises liability attorneys at Wilson Kehoe Winingham. We can help you get the compensation you deserve. 

Call 317.576.3859 or fill out an online contact form for a free, no-obligation case evaluation.