I walked into a glass door entering the store where I work and suffered facial damage.
The company is planning to controvert it because they rent the space from another store. (My company rents space for a small boutique located inside a different company’s store.)
Would it be considered “on the property” if the accident happened on the property of the company my company rents from? Who would be responsible for covering my injuries? Thanks.
Disclaimer: Our response is not formal legal advice and does not create an attorney-client relationship. It is generic legal information based on the very limited information provided. Do not rely upon the information in our response, or anywhere else on this site, when deciding the proper course of a legal matter. Always get a personalized case review from a local attorney.
Answer
Dear A,
You state you were injured when walking into the boutique. If you were injured while you were performing your customary work duties, you have a legitimate workers’ compensation claim.
In the alternative, if you were on your way to work or leaving work when you were injured, you likely would not be covered under workers’ comp. You might though, be able to pursue a personal injury negligence claim against the boutique owner.
Whether or not your employer and/or the company which owns the property will be liable for your injuries and resulting facial damage will depend upon whether or not their negligence was responsible for your injuries. (If it is a workers’ compensation claim it will not be necessary to prove negligence.)
For example, if there weren’t any markers, lettering, or something to inform people the wall area was made of glass, then the boutique owner and property owner would likely be found negligent, especially if it would be obvious to a “reasonable and prudent” person the glass could not have been seen in time to prevent someone from walking into it.
In the alternative, if there were sufficient markings on the glass indicating to people it was in fact glass, then they may not be liable.
Your claim is quite serious.
Serious cases like yours should never be handled by the victim alone. There’s just too much at stake. You’d be well advised to contact several personal injury attorneys. Bring along to your consultations with the attorneys your medical records, medical bills, receipts for medications, etc.
The attorneys will review the documentation and listen to the facts, and then tell you if you have the basis of a personal injury claim, a workers’ comp claim, or both.
Learn more here: Injured Outside of Work
The above is general information. Laws change frequently, and across jurisdictions. You should get a personalized case evaluation from a licensed attorney.
Find a local attorney to give you a free case review here, or call 888-972-0892.
We wish you the best with your claim,
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