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In the summer, a lot of people travel and go on vacations. A family from Philadelphia, PA may rent a house for a week in Ocean City, NJ. Another family from Pittsburgh may travel to Philadelphia to visit for a weekend. Unfortunately, accidents do happen while families are on vacation, and one of those accidents is a slip and fall accident or a trip and fall accident. What are your legal rights when you are injured while on vacation in another state? Do the slip and fall laws vary from state to state? This article will use a fall accident hypothetical to answer these questions.
Related Fall Accident Result – Our lawyers obtained $2.75 million for a client who suffered serious injuries after a slip and fall accident.
Hypothetical: Stairway Accident at a Rental Property in New Jersey
A Philadelphia family rents a second floor unit of a house in Ocean City, New Jersey. One night when the family is returning from the boardwalk, the father trips on one of the steps and grabs the railing to help regain his balance. However, the railing detaches from the wall causing the father to fall down the stairs rather than stopping his fall. As a result, the father breaks a bone in his right foot and sustains a concussion. Due to the broken bone in his foot, the father needs to wear a boot for 8 weeks. His foot injury prevents the father from working as a delivery truck driver which requires him to be on his feet to load and unload items.
Related: Sidewalk Fall Accident Lawsuits in Pennsylvania – Property Owners’ Duties
In New Jersey, landlords have a duty to make sure that their rentals are in a reasonably safe condition for their tenants. However, in order to hold the landlord in this hypothetical liable, they must have known or should have known about the dangerous condition, i.e., loose stairway railing. Evidence that prior tenants complained about the problem may be sufficient to prove knowledge.
For instance, 2 weeks before the fall accident, another family renting the same premises notices that the railing is coming out of the wall and tells the property owner about it. The property owner acknowledges that the railing had been slowly coming out, thanks the family for letting him know and tells them that he will fix it as soon as possible. However, the owner never gets around to fixing the railing. In such a case, the owner had notice of the dangerous condition on the premises but failed to fix it. Therefore, he would be responsible for the father’s fall and injuries. The father may file a fall accident lawsuit to recover his damages, including medical bills, out of pocket expenses and pain and suffering damages.
If you’ve been injured in a slip, trip and fall accident in Philadelphia, PA or NJ and would like more information about filing a fall accident lawsuit, contact our experienced injury lawyers to schedule a free consultation. (866) 641-0806
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