Can I Sue for Elevator Accident?
Being trapped or injured by an elevator can often be a damaging and traumatic experience. While some elevator accidents occur without any direct fault, others can occur as the result of direct negligence or inadequate care of an elevator. If you or a loved one has been injured by an elevator as the consequence of the negligence of building owner or maintenance team, you may be entitled to a significant monetary compensation. At Normandie Law Firm, one of the top-rated law groups in Los Angeles, our skilled San Francisco elevator accident lawyers can assist you in building your case, filing a lawsuit, and claiming compensation. If you have any questions after reading this article, please feel free to contact our law offices for a free consultation. An expert attorney who has experience in elevator accidents will be glad to talk with you.
Elevators Accidents
According to the U.S Bureau of Labor Statistics and the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), roughly 17,000 people are injured and 30 people are killed every year as the result of an elevator accident. Elevator accidents can occur anywhere, from hotels to shopping malls. As long as elevators are required for transit through a property, an accident can occur. There are five main types of elevators that exist, and they vary in size and capacity:
- Passenger: passenger elevators are considered the most common type elevator. They are often installed in office buildings and businesses for customer or employee transport. Passenger elevators are often driven by either hydraulics or tractions. Hydraulic passenger elevators offer a maximum travel height of 50 feet. Traction-driven elevators surpass this 50 feet height limit, and are installed in medium and high rise buildings.
- Freight: freight elevators are more durable than average (passenger) elevators and can carry heavier loads. Their primary purpose is to lift general freight, carry motor vehicles, and load industrial trucks.
- LULA: Otherwise known as Limited Use/Limited Application, LULA elevators are typically designed to fit into the small spaces of a building. They carry only a small number of people, and are used on a light, as-needed basis.
- Home: Home elevators usually installed within an individual’s home and are used for optimum convenience and accessibility. Home elevators are most commonly utilized by people with limited mobility.
- Personnel: Used most often by maintenance, mechanical, or operations personnel, personnel elevators are installed in spaces like power plants, dams, and underground facilities
While elevators are usually well built, and designed to last, mistakes can happen that cause them to malfunction. Whether it is caused by poor maintenance procedures, a defective elevator component, or even an unavoidable failure in the elevator control system, accidents happen, and when they do it is best to understand whether or not you can sue for the damages. For this reason, it is important that you consult an accomplished lawyer who has experience handling elevator accident claims to help you discern the best path to pursuing legal action. Listed below are some of the more common malfunctions that can occur to an elevator:
- Faulty wiring
- Elevator Control malfunction
- Pulley System Malfunction
- Mechanical Breakdown or Defect
- Unbalanced Leveling of Elevator
- Incomplete Repairs, Maintenance, or Inspections
- Wiring Malfunctions
These elevator malfunctions and any other similar failures can lead to serious injury and even may result in death. In pursuing legal action, it is in your best interest to discern what directly caused your injuries as sometimes multiple parties can be held liable for damages. For example, if you suffered a trip and fall accident as the result of an uneven elevator because of poor design, you may be able to pursue elevator uneven with the floor lawsuit against the building owners. It is wise to also consult an attorney that is well practiced in the specific aspects of your case. For instance, in the prior example, you would want to refer to an elevator falling attorney or elevator uneven with the floor trip and fall lawyer to best present your case. Although, say for instance your accident was caused by a negligent or poor maintenance team of a service elevator; then, in this case, a lawsuit can be filed against not just the property owners but the maintenance team as well. Regardless of the specific aspects of your case, having an experienced attorney on your side can mean the difference between filing a successful claim to compensation, and having your case thrown out of court. Call our top-rated San Francisco law firm today, and a qualified attorney with expertise in elevator accident injury lawsuits can assist you in determining the ins and outs of your case.
Your Case
When clients come into our law firm seeking legal assistance for their elevator accident injuries, they often ask a broad range of questions regarding their uneven elevator accident lawsuit. Listed below are some of the more common questions our clients ask on this subject:
- Can I sue a hotel for injuries due to accidents because the elevator stopped uneven?
- Can I sue an office building for the elevator stopping uneven and injuring me?
- Can I sue a mall or property owner if the elevator stopped higher than the floor and I got injured?
- Can I sue a mall if the elevator stopped lower than the floor and I fell?
The answer to these questions is yes, you can sue any party, whether it is hotel or office building, for your damages from an elevator accident. However, there are a few things that should be considered when filing your lawsuit. For one, you need to determine which party is at fault. There are a lot of possible responsible parties involved in elevator accidents. If your uneven elevator injury was caused as the result of poor maintenance, then the maintenance team or the property owner can be sued. However, if the elevator accident resulted from a defective elevator component, then the component manufacturer could be held liable. In this case, a product liability lawsuit would be filed against the manufacturing company. Product liability lawsuits all operate under product liability laws. Product liability laws hope to ensure that defective products do not end up in the hands of consumers. These laws also make it easier for consumers to pursue legal action against the company responsible.
If your uneven elevator accident was caused by the actions of a property owner or maintenance team, you must be able to prove the negligence of these parties. To prove negligence you must be able to show the following:
- Duty: The plaintiff (passenger) must be able to show that the defendant (property owner) owed a legal duty to the plaintiff under the circumstances
- Breach: The plaintiff must show that the defendant breached their legal duty by acting or failing to act in a certain way.
- Causation: The plaintiff must show that the defendant’s actions (or lack thereof) caused the plaintiff’s injury
- Damages: The plaintiff must show that they were harmed or injured as result of the defendant’s actions (inactions). This can be typically done through the presentation of medical bills and the evidence of lost wages.
Discerning the type of lawsuit that should be filed for your case is crucial to that lawsuit’s success. For this reason, we highly recommended that you seek the assistance of one of our San Francisco attorneys with experience in elevator accident cases to examine your case in full.
About Normandie Law Firm
If you or a loved one has suffered injury as the result of an elevator accident, you may be entitled to compensation for all the damages you have suffered. If you file a claim with our firm you could find some, if not all, of the following expenses compensable:
- Medical expenses
- Any future medical attention or treatment
- A loss of income
- A loss of future earnings
- Any loss of property or damaged property
- Any non-economic damages, such as emotional distress, pain, and suffering, anxiety trauma, or PTSD resulting from the accident.
Our Law Offices practice in San Francisco, as well as the neighboring cities of Oakland, Fremont, San Jose, Stockton, Sacramento, Modesto, Fresno, and throughout the state of California. Victims of elevator accidents can contact our law offices to learn more about how to receive compensation for their injuries. Our team of experienced lawyers is committed to ensuring every one of our clients has the resources to put up a fair fight for their case. As a show this commitment to you and your case we offer our clients the benefits of a zero fee guarantee policy. Under our zero fee policy, all clients only pay for our services once we win their case. If you already have an attorney but are in need of a second opinion case review, we can assist you free of charge as well. So, don’t hesitate, give our law offices a call and we can assist you in earning the compensation that you deserve. A lawyer experienced in elevator accident cases can take your call.
