How To Keep Your Home Safe For Visitors
We often talk about what to do if you are injured on some else’s property. But what if you are the one who owns the property—and what if you are the one that risks being sued? How can you, as a homeowner, keep your property as safe as possible?
You may not know it, but just like a business can be sued for getting lazy with safety, or for overlooking safety measures, so too can a private homeowner. Every time you have guests or visitors inside or outside your home, you risk getting sued. There are some things you can do to ensure that you won’t get sued, and that if you do, you will at least have solid defenses.
Warnings of Known Dangers
Anytime there is a dangerous condition on your property, there should be some sort of warning, or something that keeps people from falling on or in it.
So, for example, if there is a crack in your kitchen floor, it should be blocked off, or something should be around it, so that people are alerted to it. If there is a sharp edge sticking out of the couch, tie it off, and pad it. Think of what the local store would do and do that in your home as well.
These are simple common sense measures, and although simply warning others of a dangerous condition isn’t the same thing as actually fixing the problem, it can go a long way to keeping you from owning a judgment.
Be a Responsible Supervisor
Often, we have kids come to our house. One of the most common types of lawsuits against visitors is negligent supervision of children.
The kids need to be monitored, especially if they are younger. The pool or the video game system may be entertaining, but it is not a babysitter, and is no substitute for adult supervision. And never have more kids over your house than you can reasonably monitor or supervise.
Fix What’s Broken
This may seem like common sense. But you know what’s dangerous in your home, and can avoid the dangerous areas. This can lead to an attitude of “I’ll fix it later.” Other people don’t know what’s dangerous, or what presents a hazard, and may not be able to avoid it. Those things you don’t fix, can be dangerous.
Is the stair handrail shaky? Is there a loose floor tile, or a leak that could cause someone to fall? Is there a shelf teetering with items, that are just ready to fall on someone’s head? Don’t ignore these problems. Fix them.
Watch the Dog
Even if Fido is very sweet and would never bite, remember that you can be sued for any injury caused by a dog, not just a bite. So if Rover loves jumping on people, and you expect young children, or the elderly over your house, you may want to keep Rover in the bedroom.
Contact the Miami personal injury attorneys at Velasquez & Associates P.A. today for help if your family has been injured in some else’s home, or while on someone else’s property.
