Maybe you slipped on an unmarked wet floor, tripped over a hazard, or suffered injuries due to inadequate security measures. Suddenly, your life is disrupted by serious injuries through no fault of your own.
Premises liability cases like these are all too common, but the path to securing fair compensation is filled with obstacles. That’s because property owners and their insurance companies will do everything possible to avoid accountability and devalue your claim.
You need a fierce legal advocate ready to fight for your rights. At Onward Injury Law, our Pontiac premises liability attorneys have successfully taken on the toughest opponents – holding negligent property owners and their insurers responsible when their failures cause preventable harm.
Premises Liability Laws in Illinois
Under Illinois law, property owners and occupiers have a legal “duty of care” to maintain their premises in a reasonably safe condition and address any hazards that could foreseeably injure visitors. This duty applies to businesses, landlords, homeowners, government entities, and more.
However, establishing a breach of this duty is often an uphill battle. Property owners and their insurers will argue that the hazardous condition wasn’t their responsibility, that they lacked notice of it, or that you failed to exercise reasonable care for your own safety.
Common premises liability accidents include:
- Slip/trip and falls caused by hazards like wet floors, uneven surfaces, poor lighting, debris, etc.
- Dog bites, animal attacks, swimming pool accidents, and other injuries from unsafe conditions
The key legal principle is proving the property owner was negligent – meaning they failed to properly inspect, maintain, repair, or warn visitors about unreasonably dangerous conditions on their premises.
Why You Need a Pontiac Premises Liability Attorney
Handling these claims properly from the outset is crucial, as insurance companies have deep pockets and armies of attorneys aimed at minimizing payouts – or denying valid premises liability claims outright.
As soon as you notify them of your injuries, the insurance carrier will go on the offensive:
- Sending adjusters to the scene to gather evidence skewed in their favor
- Pressuring you to provide statements that downplay the owner’s negligence
- Quickly offering lowball settlements, hoping you’ll accept out of desperation
- Arguing you were comparatively negligent despite clearly hazardous conditions
Without skilled legal representation, you have little leverage to fight back against these bad-faith tactics. This is where having a Pontiac premises liability lawyer advocating for your rights becomes invaluable.
How a Premises Liability Lawyer Builds Your Case
Our attorneys rapidly respond when you suffer injuries on someone else’s property. We take an exhaustive approach to gather evidence establishing liability:
- Thoroughly investigating the accident scene and hazardous condition before it’s altered
- Locating and interviewing any witnesses to document what occurred
- Obtaining footage from security cameras, smartphones, and other video sources
- Demanding complete maintenance reports, inspection logs, and incident history for the property
- Consulting industry experts to analyze negligence, safety violations, and liability
- Handling all communications with the owner’s insurance company on your behalf
We recognize the immense physical, emotional, and financial burdens these incidents place on people. That’s why our premises liability team meticulously calculates and demands fair compensation for every damage you’ve sustained:
- Medical expenses to treat your injuries, now and any future costs
- Lost wages from being unable to work during recovery
- Disability and loss of future earnings capacity for permanent injuries
- Pain, suffering, emotional trauma, and diminished quality of life
- Wrongful death damages for families who lost loved ones
Far too often, premises owners and their insurers hope those injured will accept minimal settlement offers out of desperation or confusion. Our seasoned attorneys ensure your rights and rightful compensation are aggressively protected.
Our Premises Liability Practice Areas
While slip/trip and fall accidents are the most widely known premises liability cases, our team has extensive experience holding property owners accountable for failing to address all manner of hazardous conditions.
Slip and Fall Accidents
Slip and fall injuries can happen anywhere – grocery stores, restaurants, businesses, parking lots, apartment complexes, hotels, and beyond. Common hazards include:
- Slippery floors due to spills, leaks, or improper cleaning/maintenance
- Loose mats, torn carpeting, uneven flooring or other tripping dangers
- Debris, obstacles, items sticking out into walkways creating trip hazards
- Poor lighting, lack of guardrails, ramps without skid-resistant surfaces
No matter if your injuries resulted from momentary inattention or a hazard impossible to avoid, property owners must take reasonable steps to both correct hazards and warn visitors of potential dangers.
If their negligence contributed in any way to your slip/trip and fall accident, our Pontiac premises liability attorneys will fight to recover the full compensation you deserve.
Inadequate Property Security
While property owners should protect visitors from dangers on their premises, a frightening reality is that they also have obligations to implement reasonable security measures to deter criminal acts.
Negligent security cases involve preventable attacks, assaults, and violent crimes that occur due to a lack of proper lighting, surveillance cameras, security patrols, locks, alarms, and other safety precautions for the specific property type and area’s crime risks.
Our legal team will analyze what reasonable security could have prevented you from being subjected to violence on the property. We then hold the owner accountable for the horrific physical, psychological, and financial damages caused by their negligence.
Other Common Liability Claims
Our attorneys also have proven success pursuing compensation for other injury incidents stemming from unsafe premises, including:
- Dog bites, animal attacks, and injuries due to aggressive pets on properties
- Swimming pool accidents, near-drownings, and drownings caused by lack of security, improper maintenance, etc.
- Injuries from defective or hazardous conditions like broken stairs/handrails, malfunctioning elevators, uneven floors, and more
- Fires and burn injuries that could have been prevented with proper fire safety measures on the property
If you’ve been harmed due to a property’s unreasonably dangerous conditions or failures to address known hazards, you have grounds to file a premises liability claim. Partnering with our legal team gives you the highest chance of recovering fair damages.
About Our Pontiac Premises Liability Firm
At Onward Injury Law in Pontiac, IL, our attorneys truly understand the uphill battle people face when pursuing premises liability claims in Illinois. These cases are highly fact-specific, and property owners/insurers have immense resources dedicated to disputing negligence or shifting blame.
That’s why our premises liability team comprises seasoned litigators with the courtroom skills and relentless mentality needed to protect your rights at every stage.
We’ve achieved numerous substantial verdicts and settlements for clients harmed by negligent property owners across Livingston County and the state. Our reputation for tireless advocacy is reinforced by consistent 5-star reviews and client testimonials praising our:
- Personalized attention from your dedicated premises liability attorney
- Open communication with constant updates on case developments
- Unwavering determination to maximize your financial recovery
- Skill in dealing with uncooperative property owners and insurers
No premises liability case is too complex for our team to pursue tenaciously. We approach each as a partnership with clients in thoroughly understanding what transpired and the damages suffered.
Contact Our Pontiac Premises Liability Lawyers for a Free Consultation
If you or a loved one suffered injuries due to a property owner’s negligence anywhere in Livingston County, the time to take legal action is now. Evidence can deteriorate, witnesses become harder to locate, and premises owners will instantly start constructing their defense.
That’s why contacting our Pontiac premises liability lawyers for a free, no-obligation case review should be a top priority. During this consultation, you can explain what occurred, and we’ll provide an honest assessment of your legal options for pursuing compensation.
Best of all, you pay no upfront costs whatsoever for our services. Our contingency fee model means our legal fees are paid from a percentage of any settlement or verdict we obtain on your behalf. You risk nothing by getting our premises liability team involved immediately.
Don’t allow a negligent property owner’s insurer to take advantage of you after your premises liability incident. Contact us online or call right now to get the premises liability professionals at Onward Injury Law protecting your interests.