Other Accidents & Personal Injury Claims

 Deck & Balcony Collapse Claims

When decks and balconies collapse, serious injuries and/or death can result. They can be caused by construction defects, water damage, failure to get the balconies inspected, and overcrowding or weight. The responsible parties can include property owners, landlords, property renters, contractors, subcontractors, among others. Claims can be brought under negligence, premises liability, and/or strict liability.

Garage Door Claims

Garage door injuries are not uncommon––the National Electronic Injury Surveillance System reports that there are around 2,000 injuries per year where victims are crushed and another 7,500 where victims are pinched. Many of these injuries are children or adults trying to race under the garage door before it closes, and in such situations, they are not entitled to compensation. In other situations, where there is a mechanical, equipment, or another defect, the manufacturer, designer, seller, or another entity along the supply chain may be liable. In other less likely scenarios, the landlord or property owner may be liable––for example if they knew about the defect and did nothing to repair it.

Bedbug Torts

Bedbugs are nasty little creatures that leave their victims reeling and are super hard to eliminate. Most personal injury claims related to bedbugs occur when the victim is a guest at a hotel or rents a vacation home through companies like Airbnb. Claims are filed against these entities for a failure to uphold its duty to provide a clean room and for failure to prevent bedbug infestations.

Claims Related to Electrocution

A thousand people die each year due to electrical burns or electrocution, and roughly 30,000 are injured each year from the same, at least according to a study published by StatPearls. Injuries from electrocution can include, if not death, burns, brain injuries, organ and nerve damage, and disfigurement. Many electrocution injuries occur while on the job. Electricians have a dangerous job and can be electrocuted while working on power lines or repairing faulty appliances. Other people can be electrocuted by negligence, like leaving damaged cords around, dropping an electrical device into water, or overloading extension cords. You may or may not have a claim, and if you do, it could be based on workers’ compensation, negligence, product liability, or premise liability.

Drowning, Swimming Pools & Negligence

Swimming is great both recreationally and as a way to get in shape. It’s also dangerous, especially for people like children who do not know how to swim all that well. But even strong swimmers can drown, like in lakes with strong undercurrents. If a person drowns in a private pool, the owner or renter could be liable, especially if safety requirements weren’t adhered to, like enclosing the pool and using safety latches and alarms so that children can’t sneak into the pool unknown to anyone else in the home. If a person drowns at a public pool or park, then a lifeguard may have been negligent, and in such cases, the employer could also be held accountable through vicarious liability. If the victim drowned, then it’s a surviving family member who typically files a wrongful death lawsuit.

Police Car Accidents

Police in the pursuit of a criminal or alleged criminal may cause an accident. In such cases, the police may not be held accountable unless negligence is present. Police departments carry insurance, and that insurance may be a source for compensation. Sometimes, though, the police have immunity. As always with personal injury cases, it all comes down to the facts and circumstances.

Defective Tire Claims

Defective tires can cause serious accidents that lead to bodily injuries and even fatalities. Causes of tire failures include tire tread separation, cracks in the tires, abnormal wear, bulging in the side, and other defects. Over the years, there have been scores of tires recalled by the government. If you are in an accident caused by a tire defect, you could seek compensation from the tire manufacturer, tire distributor, maintenance shop, or a technician at a maintenance shop. If an accident was with a truck, the liable party could be the truck driver and/or his employer. It all depends on the facts and circumstances.

Logging & Timbering Accidents

Loggers are another group of people who have a dangerous job. According to the CDC, the logging industry has a fatality rate 23 times higher than most other jobs. Loggers can be injured or killed when struck by falling objects, equipment malfunctions, or trucks collide into another vehicle, person, or object. Brain injuries, broken bones, and amputations are not uncommon in the industry. The employer may be held responsible, but in some rarer instances, it could be the result of a defective product. Claims are usually filed under workers’ compensation but could be sought under negligence or product liability.

Horseback Riding

Whether you work with horses, ride horses in competitions, or simply love riding horses recreationally, it’s important to remember that these animals have a mind of their own. If you are riding recreationally through a facility, park, tourist organization, or the like, you likely sign a waiver freeing the company of all liability. That doesn’t mean they can’t be held liable if someone intentionally or negligently causes harm while riding a horse. If you work with horses and are injured, your employer could be liable and you could seek compensation under workers’ compensation. If you are at an event and a horse causes an accident, then the horse owner, event planner, or another party may be held responsible jointly or severally. Falling off or being struck by a horse can lead to significant injuries and even death.

Fitness Center Injury

Getting in shape is a lifetime goal for so many of us, and the fitness center or gym is the place to go. But if you aren’t trained on how to do certain activities or if the equipment is somehow defective, you could suffer an injury, like strained muscles, dislocated joints, fractures, bruising, and even organ damage. Fitness centers must check and maintain their equipment regularly. They must also provide a clean and safe environment. If the floor is slippery, for example, and someone slips with free weights, serious injury could result. Depending on the circumstances, either specific staff or trainers could be responsible as well as the fitness center itself. In some cases, it could simply be your own fault, but you should always speak to a personal injury attorney to be certain if you have a claim or not.