Old Buildings and Dangerous Elevators in SoCal
Old buildings and dangerous elevators go hand-in-hand in SoCal. More than 50 percent of the region’s commercial buildings were constructed before 1980. These structures were built prior to the existence of today’s more efficient products and building construction practices. Furthermore, the building code rules that existed at the time are usually much more lenient than the standards in place today.
Moreover, elevators must withstand considerable wear and tear, and in most cases, inspectors only examine them once a year.
This combination of factors causes many elevator accidents in SoCal. Regardless of the surface cause, the underlying cause is usually negligence, or a lack of care. If that’s the case, a Carlsbad elevator accident attorney can obtain substantial compensation for victims in court. The amount of compensation, and the procedure to obtain it, varies, usually according to the relationship between the elevator accident victim and the property owner.
Negligence Actions
In California, a duty of care protects everyone who sets foot inside a church, school, government building, synagogue, office building, or any other publicly-accessible structure. The extent of this duty varies, according to factors like:
- Nature of the property.
- Likelihood of entry,
- Risk of harm,
- Severity of the harm,
- Cost of preventing the harm, and
- Owner’s knowledge of the injury-causing hazard.
These factors point to a high duty of care regarding elevator safety. Elevators carry people. That’s their purpose. If the cable breaks, the door malfunctions, or another such problem occurs, as is likely if the building is more than about twenty years old, the victims usually sustain catastrophic injuries.
The final point may be the most disturbing one. In most cases, elevator accidents are relatively cheap and easy to prevent. Alas, many companies aren’t willing to take even minimal precautions to protect their guests.
The bigger they are, the harder they fall. If the applicable duty of care contained multiple requirements, it’s easier for a San Marcos personal injury lawyer to prove negligence, or a lack of care.
Workers’ Compensation
If the injured victim was an employee of the company that owned the building, as opposed to an employee of a building tenant, workers’ compensation usually applies. This no-fault benefit system pays:
- Lost Wages: Most job injury victims receive two-thirds of their average weekly wage (AWW) for the duration of their temporary or permanent disabilities. Prior paychecks, by themselves, often don’t accurately measure the AWW. For example, many victims miss overtime opportunities or performance bonus milestones because of their injuries.
- Medical Bills: Workers’ compensation insurance companies directly pay all reasonably necessary medical bills, and victims aren’t financially responsible for any unpaid charges, such as the gap between private pay cost and insurance reimbursed cost. This benefit applies to all medical bills from emergency transportation to physical therapy. This benefit also covers prescription drugs and other ancillary costs.
Don’t miss that “no-fault” element. Maximum benefits are available even if the victim was partially at fault for, or entirely at fault for, the injury. A few limited defenses, such as an injury that occurred while the victim was intoxicated, are available.
Sometimes, these systems overlap. In some cases, injured workers can file civil claims and receive additional compensation for their emotional distress and other noneconomic losses.
Reach Out to a Dedicated San Diego County Lawyer
Injury victims are entitled to substantial compensation. For a confidential consultation with an experienced personal injury lawyer in San Marcos, contact the Pursley Law Firm. Virtual, home, and hospital visits are available.
