Dangerous Property Conditions

There is a legal duty under New Hampshire premises liability law that every property owner must take proper care to maintain his or her property in a reasonably safe condition. Unfortunately, many property owners do not follow the law and allow dangerous/hazardous conditions to exist that cause tens of thousands of serious injuries to tenants and other members of the public every year. Falls due to property hazards result in a wide array of injuries from minor bumps and bruises to broken bones, brain injuries, internal organ injuries, or even death. If you or a loved one have been seriously injured by a dangerous property condition such as a defective stairway, untreated ice, a poorly built deck, or other property hazard, you may be entitled to compensation for your injuries.

Property owners are liable under New Hampshire law for injuries caused by hazardous conditions on their property if:

1. The dangerous condition was created by the owner;
2. The owner was aware of the condition and did nothing to remedy it; and/or
3. The owner should have easily known about the condition and remedied the defect prior to the defect causing injury to a tenant, customer, etc.

Not surprisingly, many property owners facing a claim from someone who was seriously injured on their property will argue that they were not aware of the defect/hazard that caused the injury and/or assert that, even with reasonably diligent inspection, the defect/hazard would not have been apparent. When these arguments are raised, we routinely employ expert consultants in building science, construction, and maintenance to provide opinions about how the defect occurred, how long it was present, and what it would have taken to remedy it. We also obtain maintenance records and statements from witnesses, focusing in particular on how long the defect was present prior to the time of our client’s injury, whether there were prior complaints about the defect, and whether anyone else was injured by the defect. Occasionally video footage from a surveillance camera can be obtained. In one recent case we handled, we obtained video footage showing that not only had other people slipped on the ice prior to our client being injured, but the owner himself had slipped! While this type of “smoking gun” evidence is very rare, in the vast majority of cases we have handled we were able to uncover sufficient evidence to establish fault on the part of the property owner and thereby resolve our clients’ cases favorably. The key to success in this type of case is a timely investigation to preserve evidence and obtain statements from witnesses before their memories fade.

If you or a loved one has been seriously injured due to a dangerous property condition, contact Peter Thompson & Associates today. Our experience and dedication in this field will help you to get the compensation you deserve and maximize your recovery. Call us today at 800.804.2004 or contact us online. If you are unable to come to us due to your injuries, we’ll come to you. We routinely do home and hospital visits.