Crime is an unfortunate fact of life in many areas, requiring people to take reasonable, common-sense precautions. Just as you lock your doors and store your valuables out-of-sight at home to prevent a break-in and robbery, commercial property owners, landlords, and others must take appropriate precautions to protect their customers from crime.
If you were a victim of a crime on another party’s property and suffered physical or emotional injuries, consult a trusted premises liability attorney about your rights. In many cases, a Mount Dora negligent security lawyer could assert a claim against the property owner for compensation to cover your medical bills, lost wages, and other impacts of the incident. This would be a civil case against the property owner – not a criminal charge against the criminal.
Negligence means not taking reasonable steps to protect others from harm, with the result that someone experiences actual harm due to the failure. Negligent security means that an owner or tenant knows that conditions at their property open up the possibility of criminal activity and they do not take enough appropriate steps to stop it. Most negligent security cases revolve around incidents at places like
The owners and operators of establishments that invite the public must take reasonable steps to protect their patrons.
What might seem reasonable in one situation might not be reasonable in another. A court would consider the expense and feasibility of taking a specific measure against the need for protection. For example, hiring a security company to patrol the premises 24/7 might not be necessary if improved lighting would significantly reduce the crime risk. A Mount Dora inadequate security attorney could evaluate whether an operator’s security measures were reasonable in a specific case.
A business owner or operator is not always liable for any crime on their premises. However, they are usually liable if their security efforts were inadequate considering the type of enterprise, the level of criminal activity in the area, and whether other patrons had been crime victims there in the past.
Businesses that handle substantial cash or sell certain items must implement more stringent security measures than businesses that do neither. Businesses that attract tourists should devote considerable resources to protecting their customers because tourists are often crime targets. Apartment buildings in high-crime areas must make strenuous efforts to protect residents from criminal activity.
A negligent security attorney in Mount Dora could review the crime statistics in the area to determine whether it was foreseeable that a person might be a crime victim at the specific location. They also could investigate whether the enterprise failed to maintain or upgrade its security measures in response to conditions in the neighborhood. Information obtained through these investigations could be evidence of negligence.
When a crime victim proves that a property owner or operator’s negligence contributed to their injury, they establish a right to compensatory damages.
The property owner must reimburse the value of any money or physical property damaged, stolen, or destroyed in the incident. They also must pay the claimant’s medical costs, lost income, and any other expenses they incurred due to the crime.
Being a crime victim often causes emotional and mental health impacts. In addition to paying for the cost of treatment, a negligent property owner could be liable to pay compensation for the claimant’s reduced quality of life due to their physical and emotional injuries.
When you are targeted for a crime and believe a property owner should have done more to prevent it, do not ignore your concerns. Individuals and businesses have a responsibility to protect others from foreseeable events, including crime.
A Mount Dora negligent security lawyer could fight to get you a settlement that provides reasonable compensation. Schedule a consultation today.
The Umansky Law Firm Criminal Defense & Injury Attorneys
