Duty of Care: Injured by Falling Inventory in a Retail Location

 Posted on January 11, 2018 in Blog Post

Ordinarily, when a consumer is zooming through a “big box” retain center or other bustling store in a major shopping center, he or she only sees what is straight ahead and to the left and right. This mundane truth is despite the fact that all around are shelving units and metal pallets stacking store items from the floor to the rafters. While employees are aware of these storage devices, customers typically only become aware of them when an accident is caused by a falling store item. With items often being heavy and stored at a significant height, accidents caused by falling store items can inflict severe injuries on the unsuspecting customers below. In such instances, it is only right to hold the retailer responsible for the injuries sustained. An experienced Park Ridge premises liability attorney is well aware of this principle of liability, and will advocate for your legal rights.

Retailers Owe Customers an Elevated Duty of Care

In life, we owe one another a duty of care. This duty includes, for example, driving safely. In the law, the sphere of this duty ranges from a broad “zone” to an even broader (and abstract) area of foreseeability. Importantly, retailers owe customers a duty of care, too. This duty of care is even greater – even more serious – than the duty owed by individuals to one another.

Returning to legal terminology, customers are classified as “invitees” of a business. This is the case whether a customer makes a purchase or not. As an invitee of a retailer or other business, a customer is owed a duty of safekeeping – of being protected from harm while on the premises of the business. It is the solemn responsibility of the business to protect its customers from falling items by adequately securing them in storage unites. The same goes for the slip-and-fall risk posed by any unattended slippery substances on store floors, and all other dangers present on the premises.

Seeking Compensation for Injuries Caused by a Falling Store Item

If you have been injured by a falling store item, slip-and-fall, or other incident while at a retailer or other store, you are eligible to seek compensation for your medical bills, pain and suffering, lost income due to missed work, and losses stemming from any short or long-term disabilities suffered. An experienced Park Ridge personal injury attorney will work to obtain the compensation you need and deserve for the injuries you have suffered.

Source:

http://www.ilga.gov/legislation/ilcs/ilcs4.asp?DocName=073500050HArt%2E+XIII+Pt%2E+2&ActID=2017&ChapterID=56&SeqStart=102800000&SeqEnd=106200000