Parking Lot Accident Attorney
Not all injury accidents occur on the roads. In fact, with all the activity and distractions occurring in parking lots, these can also be prime places for injury accidents. It's important to be aware that each year, approximately 20 percent of all vehicle accidents occur in parking lots, resulting in about 60,000 injuries annually.
These injuries can profoundly disrupt lives. If you or a loved one has experienced such an injury, the physical, emotional, and financial challenges that follow can feel overwhelming.
It's critical to know that if your injury resulted from someone else's negligence, whether through unsafe property conditions, reckless driving, or inadequate maintenance practices, you may have the right to seek compensation.
Our parking lot accident lawyers are committed to helping you if you've suffered an injury in a parking lot, parking garage, or other similar parking structure. As a victim of a parking lot accident, you have the right to seek and potentially receive full compensation for your losses.
Our lawyers will tirelessly work to ensure you receive the full compensation you're entitled to, providing you with the financial support you need during this challenging time.
Auto accidents are perhaps the most common source of parking lot injuries, with injuries ranging from broken bones, whiplash and head and brain injuries.
Our personal injury lawyers can file a lawsuit on your behalf if you were hurt in a parking structure. We typically file lawsuits against negligent motorists, property owners (for premises liability), property management companies, maintenance companies, and government entities.
At Injury Justice Law Firm, our California personal injury attorneys are highly skilled in advocating for parking lot injury victims, and we will work to procure the full amount of compensation to which you're entitled by law.
Causes of Parking Lot Accidents
Parking lots may seem relatively safe compared to roadways, but they are rife with hazards that can lead to serious accidents. Some common causes include:
- Distracted Driving: Parking lots are breeding grounds for distracted activities. Drivers often check their phones, adjust GPS devices, or look for open spaces while navigating these areas.
- Poor Visibility When Backing Out: Reversing in congested parking areas is a common recipe for accidents. Blind spots, obstructed views, and misjudging distances can all lead to devastating outcomes, especially if pedestrians are nearby.
- Slip-and-Fall Accidents: Uneven pavement, wet surfaces, potholes, and insufficient lighting can all create significant risks for slips, trips, and falls. Injuries from these incidents include sprains and fractures, to more severe, life-altering damage.
- Speeding: When drivers rush in parking lots, it's a recipe for disaster. Even modestly higher speeds can significantly increase the force of impacts, causing preventable harm to pedestrians and other motorists.
- Weather-Related Hazards: Rain, snow, or ice can lead to slick parking lots that pose a danger to both pedestrians and drivers. When property owners fail to take steps to address these conditions, injuries are more likely to occur.
Parking lot accidents can result in severe injuries, including broken bones, lacerations, neck injuries, back injuries, knee and hip injuries, and even death. These are not minor incidents, and they require immediate and serious legal attention. Don't wait, contact us today for the legal help you need.
Negligence in Parking Lot Accidents
While parking lot speeds are not high, distractions are everywhere. A National Safety Council poll revealed that many drivers engage in these activities while driving in parking lots.
- Phone calls,
- Texting,
- Set GPS,
- Dial-up digital music,
- Check alerts,
- Review social media, and
- Read or draft emails using their cell phones.
Many drivers will also take photos or videos, surf the internet, and engage in video chats from their cell phone while driving in parking lots, as well as groom, watch television or movies, and use a laptop or tablet again while driving in parking lots.
How to Determine Liability
Determining liability in a parking lot accident can be a complex process. Depending on the circumstances of the accident, liability may be assigned to different parties. Our experienced attorneys can guide you through this process, ensuring that all responsible parties are held accountable for your injuries. Let's review below:
- Drivers Cause the Majority of Parking Lot Accidents. When two vehicles collide or a pedestrian is injured by a vehicle, the at-fault driver is typically liable for the resulting damages, the same as with accidents that happen on roadways. Poor behavior, such as failing to yield, driving distracted, or speeding, can all demonstrate negligence on the part of the driver.
- Property Owners and Maintenance Responsibility. Unsafe conditions, such as poorly maintained surfaces, inadequate lighting, or a lack of proper signage, often indicate the party responsible for maintaining the parking lot. Whether it's a mall, an office building, or a private facility, property owners have a duty of care to prioritize the safety of their users. Parking lot potholes, cracks, puddles, debris, water, or other liquids, as well as snow or ice, can all contribute to falls, potentially causing serious injury. When property owners fail to address hazards, liability may fall on their shoulders.
- Parking Lot Design. The parking lots themselves, when poorly designed, can also cause or contribute to serious personal injuries. A National Safety Council report shows that about one-third of all injuries come from falls and that falling is a leading cause of death among the elderly. The report also reveals that the leading causes of fall hospitalizations are head injury and hip fracture.
What Must You Show
To recover for a parking lot injury takes more than merely showing the injury. Motor vehicle and parking lot owners are not guarantors of occupant and pedestrian safety. They do not ensure the health of occupants and pedestrians.
Instead, the law generally requires claimants to prove fault, also known as negligence or carelessness, to recover compensation from another for an injury. No fault, no recovery.
Insurers pay full claim value only when the claimant's lawyer shows a compelling case for the insured's fault. The 'insured defendant' refers to the person or entity against whom the claim is made, and the 'insurer' is the party responsible for paying the claim. Proving fault requires gathering evidence that the insured defendant violated an established standard of care.
Gathering evidence and articulating the legal standard is the work of a lawyer, not an unrepresented claimant. Our experienced attorneys will guide you through the legal process, from gathering evidence to presenting your case in court, ensuring that you receive the compensation you deserve.
How to Prove Fault
Our personal injury law firm knows how to investigate, prepare, and pursue parking lot claims to recover full value for their clients by proving fault, such as the following factors:
- Speeding,
- Distracted driving,
- Cutting across parking spots,
- Failing to use headlights,
- Disregarding pedestrian stop signs,
- Failure to use mirrors when backing,
- Blind spots from walls and pillars,
- Inadequate parking-lot striping or lighting,
- Parking-lot potholes, cracks, or debris,
- Water, oil, other liquids, snow, or ice.
Shared Liability in Some Cases
California is a pure comparative negligence state, which means that liability can be apportioned as a percentage of the parties' contributions to the accident. Thus, there are many instances where more than one party may be responsible for a parking lot injury.
For example, if a driver caused an accident in a poorly lit parking lot, the injured person may have grounds to pursue compensation from both the driver and the property owner. Likewise, if both you and the other driver were distracted prior to the collision that caused your injury, your claim may be reduced by the percentage you were deemed to have contributed to the accident.
What Damages May Be Claimed
Suppose you've been injured in a parking lot accident caused by another party's negligence. In that case, you may be eligible to claim a variety of damages to help alleviate some of the burdens that injuries often create.
Economic damages are meant to address the tangible financial losses that result from an injury, including:
- Medical Expenses: This includes emergency care, hospital stays, surgeries, physical therapy, and ongoing treatment.
- Lost Wages: If your injury has left you unable to work, you may claim compensation for lost income, including future earning potential, if the injury leads to long-term disability.
- Property Damage: Vehicle repair costs or replacement may also be included if your car was damaged during an accident.
Non-economic damages compensate for intangible impacts, which can often be just as devastating as financial losses. Examples include:
- Pain and Suffering: Emotional and physical pain resulting from the injury.
- Loss of Enjoyment: When injuries prevent you from enjoying activities or hobbies you previously valued.
- Mental Anguish: Anxiety, depression, and other psychological effects stemming from the incident.
Role of a Personal Injury Lawyer
Our personal injury attorneys play a vital role in parking lot accident cases. We will interview with you to learn the facts of your case and your medical needs. We can also manage your ongoing medical care.
We will provide you with legal advice on your options and assist you in effectively protecting your legal rights. We can also gather evidence in your case, such as taking photos at the scene of the accident or obtaining a police report. If necessary, we can appoint an expert to assist in explaining this evidence to a judge or jury.
We can also help accident victims by filing insurance claims with the insurer of the person or entity that caused an injury. We can even negotiate with a claims adjuster to reach a fair settlement in your case. If no settlement is reached, we can file a lawsuit on your behalf and represent you in court.
We can help you receive the maximum compensation for your injuries because we understand the value of your case, and therefore, will hold liable individuals or companies accountable for paying their fair share of the accident. We know where to uncover hidden value in a case to help boost your payout.
We offer free consultations and work on a contingency basis, meaning you will not incur any fees unless we successfully resolve your case. The Injury Justice Law Firm is located in Los Angeles, CA.
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