Bronx Premises Liability Attorney

If you were hurt on someone else’s property in the Bronx, you can recover compensation for your injuries. Perhaps you tumbled down the steps at Yankee Stadium because a vendor had left a food tray on the ground, or you slipped on a water puddle at the New York Botanical Gardens or the Bronx Zoo. The borough is home to dozens of great eateries, shops, museums, and parks, and you could slip, trip, or fall at any of these locations. Also, the Bronx has hundreds of miles of sidewalks, and more than a few of them have cracks or uneven surfaces.

All property owners and public establishments must keep their premises safe for all patrons, visitors, and others who lawfully come on their property. This includes pedestrians walking on the sidewalks surrounding their properties.

Our Results

Our Bronx personal injury lawyers have recovered millions of dollars in total compensation for our clients.

Here are a few of our recent results:

• $1 million for an electrical worker who suffered a burn injury
• $620,000 for three people who suffered head and neck injuries when the elevator they were riding in suddenly stopped
• $420,000 for a pedestrian who fell into an open sidewalk cellar door
• $350,000 for a woman who fell on freshly painted stairs

We have also obtained many other six- and seven-figure awards for our clients both during settlement negotiations and at trial.

New York’s Premises Liability Laws

New York’s premises liability laws require property owners to keep their premises safe or warn people who visit their establishments or come onto their property of any dangers. Certain exceptions exist, but if you are on someone else’s property legally and a preventable or foreseeable hazard or danger injured you, you likely have a case.

Premises liability laws are broad in scope and include:

• Wet floors
• Frayed carpet or upturned rugs
• Uncovered electrical cords on the ground
• Uneven flooring or staircases
• Insufficient lighting
• Cracked or bulging sidewalks

Premises liability laws cover public establishments, such as restaurants and stores, as well as private residences and property. They can also include public parks, playgrounds, and recreational facilities. However, claims against a municipality, such as New York City, typically have different rules and requirements, so you will need to discuss your matter with an attorney if you were injured on city-owned property. In particular, your deadline to file a claim may decrease substantially when you sue the government.

You can also suffer injuries because of other incidents on someone’s premises, such as:

• Dog bites
• Falling objects
• Electrical shock
• Burns
• Swimming pool accidents
• Fires
• Gas leaks causing explosions or carbon monoxide poisoning

Furthermore, inadequate or negligent security may have led to a break-in or assault that harmed you.

Examples of Premises Liability

Accidents can still happen on a well-maintained property. Many times, however, the property owner could have prevented the accident if they had taken precautions or eliminated or mitigated the hazard.

Maybe you were enjoying the day at The Bronx Museum of the Arts and needed to go to the restroom. When you went in, you slipped and fell and broke your arm on a wet floor. If the museum’s staff and management knew about the water but had not mopped it up or posted a Wet Floor sign, you may have a viable claim.

Perhaps you live in Riverdale and were headed up Kingsbridge Avenue to get something to eat when you tripped and fell because of a large crack in the sidewalk in front of a store or residence. New York City holds businesses and property owners responsible for keeping the sidewalks surrounding their establishments clean and passable, and property owners must fix defects in sidewalks that fall within their property lines. This includes clearing snow and ice.

You may also pursue compensation if someone else’s dog bites you, and if it happened in a dog-friendly business, you may have a claim against the store’s property owner. You could suffer burns or cuts from broken glass when visiting a restaurant if a waiter drops a tray on you, for instance, or you could strike your head on a window grate if you fall as you’re walking down the street.

You could have a premises liability claim if you walked to your car in a parking garage with inadequate lighting or no security cameras and someone assaulted you. Other instances include injuries from caustic chemicals or steam or getting hurt while working on a negligent owner’s property.

No matter the reason, if you were on someone’s property legally and suffered injuries due to preventable conditions, immediately contact the Law Offices of Ivan M. Diamond for a free case evaluation.

What Should I Do After Suffering Injuries on Someone’s Property in the Bronx?

If you are injured on someone else’s property, notify the property owner immediately. Seek prompt medical treatment, even if your injuries appear minor. Getting medical care and a record of treatment is vital to your injury claim, and you must include that information when you file.

If you can, take pictures of the accident scene. Photographic evidence can show how the property’s condition led to the accident and your injuries.

You will need to get the property owner’s insurance information since you must file your injury claim with them. Consult a Bronx premises liability lawyer at The Law Offices of Ivan M. Diamond as soon as possible for help doing this.

We can contact the insurance company for you, and we can provide them with the basic information they will need to initiate your claim and submit forms and documents for you. We are more prepared to field questions regarding the accident, and we can help you avoid making mistakes or doing anything that may jeopardize your case.

Additionally, insurance companies often try every method to deny liability, and they may blame you for the accident. They may refuse to pay a claim, or they may offer only the bare minimum for compensation. We understand these tactics and can fight to help you get as much as you deserve.

If The Law Offices of Ivan M. Diamond represents you and the insurance company contacts you for any reason, you don’t have to talk to them. Refer them to us.

When Should I File My Premises Liability Claim?

New York allows you three years from your injury to file a premises liability lawsuit with the court, but it allows only two years if someone died because of the incident. You get as little as 90 days to file suit against the government, and may need to jump through many loopholes first.

This may sound like enough time, but you must consider the length and complexity of the injury claims process. Between negotiations with the insurance company and the time it will take your attorney to investigate and prepare your claim, you really don’t have time to waste.

You need to submit your claim with the insurance company as soon as possible, and an attorney can build the strongest and most compelling case if you have to go to trial. Once the statute of limitation expires, you cannot file a claim, and you will have virtually no legal recourse to obtain compensation.

Determining Fault and New York’s Contributory Negligence Laws

Before you can proceed with your Bronx premises liability claim, you must show that the property owner is liable for your injuries. If you were in a supermarket and someone next to you in the aisle dropped a bottle of vinegar and you slipped and fell, you may not have a claim because the store owner couldn’t have known about the spill and did not have a chance to clean it up. However, if a store employee mopped the aisle before you got there and didn’t place warnings to show the floor was wet and you slipped and fell, you may hold the store owner liable for your injuries.

The important element of any premises liability claim is that the property owner knew of the hazard, or should have reasonably known, and made no attempt to clean it up or correct the hazard.

Additionally, New York follows a comparative fault law for personal injury claims. In simplest terms, it means that you can still recover compensation even if you were partially, or mostly, responsible for causing the accident or your injuries.

Even if you don’t think you have a solid case, the law is complicated, and you may have options you didn’t realize. The Law Offices of Ivan M. Diamond can help you determine if you have a case and whether comparative fault is an issue. We can also help you prepare and file your case quickly, and we can assert your rights and help you pursue compensation throughout the process to improve your odds of success.

Types of Injuries You Can Suffer

You can suffer a wide range of injuries in premises liability accidents, and you may have sustained:

• Cuts and bruises
• Deep lacerations
• Broken bones and compound fractures
• Muscle strains and sprains
• Torn tendons and ligaments
• Head and neck injuries
• Spinal cord injuries
• Traumatic brain injuries
• Internal injuries
• Burns from fire, chemicals, or electricity

You should never assume you were not injured because you felt fine when the accident happened. Some injuries do not present symptoms initially, such as head or spinal injuries, and you may not notice symptoms until hours, days, or even weeks later.

Always get a medical evaluation after the accident and seek medical care immediately if you start to notice anything out of the ordinary.

Types of Compensation You Can Receive

For premises liability claims, you can pursue compensation for both economic and non-economic damages.

Economic damages refer to financial losses you suffered, such as:

• Medical bills and treatment expenses
• Costs to repair or replace personal property
• Lost wages or monetary compensation from work
• Loss of earning capacity

Non-economic damages refer to intangible injuries, such as:

• Pain and suffering
• Loss of quality of life
• Emotional or mental distress
• Disfigurement or excessive scarring

You are entitled to the full amount of compensation to cover your losses and provide for any future care or accommodations you will need because of your injury, and you can turn to the Law Offices of Ivan M. Diamond for help.

Get a Premier Bronx Premises Liability Attorney

A New York native, attorney Ivan M. Diamond has helped thousands of accident victims throughout the Bronx and the greater New York City metro since 1995, and he has in-depth knowledge of New York’s premises liability laws. He has won awards for his outstanding client service and earned recognition for his success in obtaining substantial compensation for his clients.

You can count on him to work hard on your premises liability case to get the maximum amount possible. We understand how to deal with insurance companies and negotiate higher settlements, and we will fully prepare to take your case to trial if necessary.

To speak with us about your Bronx premises liability claim at no cost, you can contact the Law Offices of Ivan M. Diamond at (718) 588-2000 for your free consultation.

Schedule A Free Consultation

The Law Offices of Ivan M. Diamond
888 Grand Concourse Suite #1L, 10451
(718) 588-2000

Client Review: 5/5
★ ★ ★ ★ ★

“I found Attorney Diamond to be professional, knowledgeable and direct about his thoughts on the merits of my case, from the start. I appreciated the candor because it helped me understand my options and the outcome was agreeable to me.”

Review by: Sami D.