If you were injured on a staircase in a New York City building, please read the following:
Thousands of people trip, slip, or fall on stairs every year. These types of accidents are often preventable. When a person is injured on a flight of stairs, it is often due to violations of the building code or other conditions, which are beyond the control of the individual. Property owners are responsible for the maintenance of the stairwells and ensuring stairways and handrails are in compliance with the New York Building Code
The Building Code has specific requirements for the stairways in all types of structures. Specifically, the code encompasses many factors such as width, capacity, handrails, guardrails, uniform riser height, minimum tread size, lighting, and specification for landings and doors. These requirements were established to ensure u
ser safety. Not only must a landlord or building owner make sure their stairways are in compliance with the Building Code, they also have the responsibility to perform any necessary maintenance to damaged or defective stairways.
For a landlord or building owner to be legally responsible for the injuries you suffered from a stairway accident on their property, one of the following must be true:
- The owner of the premises or an employee caused the spill, worn or weak spot, or other dangerous surface or item, to be underfoot, or
- The owner of the premises or an employee knew of the dangerous surface but did nothing about it, or
- The owner of the premises or an employee should have known of the dangerous surface because a “reasonable” person taking care of the property would have discovered and removed or repaired it.
It is also important to note that a court will take into consideration whether your own carelessness contributed to the accident.
If you suffered a serious injury because of a defective or dangerous stairway, the lawyers from Hach & Rose, LLP, are here to help. Get a free case evaluation by calling us today, and find out if you are entitled to obtain monetary compensation for your lost wages, medical bills, pain and suffering and other damages.