It is not unusual for people to be injured or even killed in Florida because of a negligent property owner failing to properly maintain his or her property. Often, this might happen because of a slip and fall accident or some other occurrence that can arise in a premises liability case. However, premises liability can apply in many types of situation.
Recently, a Florida woman filed suit against a daycare facility, alleging that the facility’s negligence contributed to the death of her 4-year-old daughter. According to her complaint, the tragedy occurred when a car crashed into the building where the facility was housed.
According to the lawsuit, the tragedy occurred when one car rear-ended another car. The car that was hit turned right, went into a parking lot next to the building in which the daycare center was housed and crashed into it at a high rate, of speed killing the child inside.
The filing states that the 45 mph speed limit on the road in which the crash occurred made such an incident a predictable possibility. The grieving mother claims that before this accident, other vehicles had crashed into the defendant’s facilities, and that therefore the daycare center should have been alerted to its duty to guard against car crashes in order to the children who were at the daycare center. She is seeking to receive compensation through premises liability and negligence.
This is a tragic story, and an unusual premises liability case, but it does illustrate some important points about the law. Premises liability cases often revolve around the question of whether the accident was foreseeable. For instance, a grocery store owner knows that a spill on a slick floor can lead to a slip and fall accident, and therefore must clean up spills as soon as possible. However, a grocery store owner may not have the same kind of duty to prevent an extremely unusual accident. It is important for those who have been hurt on another’s property to discuss the circumstances with an experienced attorney.
Source: CourthouseNews.com, “Mom Sues Daycare Over Tot’s Death,” Monica Pais, Dec. 15, 2015
