Experienced Premises Liability Attorney Representing Alabama Victims
Accidents can happen in a variety of ways. If you or someone you know has been injured in a slip and fall on another’s property or business, you may have a claim against the property owner. Since these premises liability cases can be complex, it is important to reach out to knowledgeable Foley premises liability lawyer Whit Thomas, who will fight for your rights and help you pursue the compensation that you deserve.
Alabama Property Owners May Have a Duty to Protect You From Injury
Property owners are obligated to keep their premises in a safe condition to prevent foreseeable injuries to those who enter their land. However, the duty that a property owner owes a visitor depends on the type of visitor who enters the land. Under Alabama law, visitors fall into one of three categories: invitees, licensees, and trespassers.
An invitee is owed the highest duty of care. This is generally someone who enters a property for business or commercial purposes, such as a store customer or hotel guest. A landowner is required to use reasonable care to keep the premises in safe condition for the invitee. Additionally, a property owner is obligated to warn an invitee of dangers that are known or should be known to the owner.
A licensee is owed a higher duty than a trespasser but less than an invitee. This is usually a social guest who enters a property for leisure purposes, such as someone attending a barbecue or birthday party at a friend’s house. A landowner has a duty to not willfully or wantonly injure the licensee, and to avoid negligently injuring the licensee after discovering a hazard. The landowner also must not expose the licensee to dangers such as traps, pitfalls, obstructions, and any other conditions that are created through the landowner’s active negligence.
A trespasser is a person who enters someone else’s property without the landowner’s permission. A trespasser is owed the lowest duty of the three categories of visitors. A property owner must not willfully or wantonly injure a trespasser through “pitfalls” or “booby traps.”
Trespassing children may be owed a higher duty than trespassing adults. Under the doctrine of attractive nuisance, the duty may change if there is a dangerous condition on the owner’s land that one would expect to attract children, such as a swimming pool or play area. For the higher standard of care to apply, the owner must be aware of the existence and nature of the condition, the child must not appreciate the danger of the condition, and the child must not receive warning of the danger.