Five Common Types of Shopping Mall Injuries

Where do you go shopping when you need to buy clothes, jewelry, toys, and other gifts? For many, the answer is a shopping mall.

Shopping malls—with their wide white pathways, busy storefronts, moving staircases, and food courts—are icons of American consumerism, featured just as realistically on movie screens and as they are during real-life weekend shopping sprees. Chances are that you have stepped inside a shopping mall, too.

Commercial property owners, shopkeepers, and department stores have a responsibility to maintain a safe premises for their patrons. Unfortunately, if the worst happens and you or your loved ones were injured while in a shopping mall or on other public property, things can quickly get complicated.

Common Shopping Mall Injuries

If a shopping mall fails to keep the mall and its parking areas safe, you could be injured as a result. The five following injuries are particularly common in shopping malls.

Slips, Trips, and Falls

Slips, trips, and falls are the most common types of injuries that occur in shopping malls. They can be caused by wet floors, uneven tiles or carpets, inadequate lighting, unsecured cords, and other obstacles.

Overcrowding

Black Friday isn’t the only time to worry about being trampled by other shoppers; any sale, holiday, or product launch could create the conditions conducive to being injured by overcrowding. When a mall or store has poor security and doesn’t have a crowd control plan, it could result in injury.

Escalators, Elevators, and Staircases

If a shopping mall (or its accompanying parking structure) spans more than one floor, patrons will encounter escalators, elevators, and staircases. These facilities are not only how people navigate the premises; they also are areas for potential injuries, especially when poorly maintained or lacking proper lighting.

Falling Objects

Debris, improperly stacked boxes, broken ceiling tiles, advertisement banners, or poorly shelved merchandise could all fall and injure anyone standing in the way. The seriousness of the injury can depend on several factors, including the height of the fall and the weight of the object.

Assaults and Muggings

It’s scary to think about, but physical and sexual assaults as well as muggings are common in shopping malls. These crimes usually occur in areas with poor lighting and security, such as in bathrooms and in parking areas.

Contact a Premises Liability Attorney Today

If you or a loved one have been injured on public property as a result of a negligence, contact the Indianapolis Premises Liability Attorneys of Wilson Kehoe Winingham. The lawyers at WKW can help you get the compensation you deserve. Call 317.920.6400 or fill out an online contact form for a free, no-obligation case evaluation.

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