Georgia law holds businesses to a high standard when it comes to their customers’ safety. Therefore, restaurants must take precautions to ensure their patrons are not injured while on the property. Skilled premises liability attorney Terrence R. Bethune can help you if you were hurt by premises liability at an Atlanta restaurant. You may be entitled to compensation for your physical, emotional, and financial harm if the restaurant was negligent.
GEORGIA LAW REQUIRES RESTAURANTS TO PROTECT THEIR CUSTOMERS
The area of law applicable to injuries that occur on a person’s or entity’s property is called premises liability. Georgia is in the majority of states that require some property owners to regularly inspect the premises for dangerous conditions that may harm visitors. Those charged with this responsibility are generally business owners and operators that open their property to customers. Restaurants fall into this category. Therefore, if a patron is injured by a dangerous condition, he or she may be able to seek compensation from the establishment’s owner.
SEEKING DAMAGES THROUGH A NEGLIGENCE CLAIM
A customer hurt at a restaurant can pursue compensation for injuries caused on the location according to premises liability laws. To prevail in such a claim, the victim must prove four elements.
First, he or she must show that there was a dangerous condition on the property. One example of a dangerous condition likely to be found at a restaurant is a slippery floor caused by a spilled drink or dropped food. Other dangerous conditions might be an inadequately maintained handrail that poses an unreasonable risk to customers.
The second element is that the property owner knew or should have known of the dangerous condition. This element reflects the duty of a property owner or person acting on its behalf to make regular inspections of the property for dangerous conditions. Therefore, a business can be held responsible for a dangerous condition on the premises even if it was not aware of it.
The third element is that the property owner did not fix the situation. This means failing to clean up a slippery mess, repair the condition, or block off the area of the condition until it is fixed. Finally, the victim must prove that the hazard caused his or her injuries. In Georgia, this requires establishing that the dangerous condition was both the cause in fact and the legal cause of the harm. This means that the accident must be a direct result and a foreseeable consequence of the hazard.
CONSULT AN ATLANTA ATTORNEY FAMILIAR WITH SLIP AND FALL CASES
Restaurants have a legal duty to keep their customers safe from dangerous conditions. Exposing them to a slippery floor or other hazard, even for a short time, may leave business owners liable. If you were hurt by a dangerous condition on the property of a restaurant in the Atlanta region, personal injury lawyer Terrence R. Bethune may be able to help you seek compensation. To see if you have a case, call 1-800-INJURED or visit our contact page.
