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Is the property owner required to pay your medical expenses and damages when you fall?

When is the property owner liable to pay for the injured person’s injuries and medical care? This is one of the most misunderstood concepts involving fall cases. Clients almost universally believe that the property owner is required to pay their medical costs and damages simply because it occurred on someone else's property. This is not true. It is a myth which persists and is widely, but mistakenly, believed to be true.

In most instances, a property owner owes a duty of reasonable care to someone coming on their property for business or social reasons. They may be held liable only if it can be proven the property owner breached their duty, meaning they failed to exercise reasonable care in designing or maintaining their property. This applies to all types of fall cases, from a slip on food or liquid in a supermarket, to allowing an object to fall on a customer in a big-box store.

This widely misunderstood idea the owner is automatically liable may be related to confusion about ” medical payments” coverage, often found on a homeowner or a business liability insurance policy. It is well known most homeowner’s insurance policies include at least $1000 in “medical payments” coverage. The typical homeowner's insurance carrier will pay under that portion of the policy for medical expenses incurred by anyone injured on the property, regardless of whether the homeowner was at fault or not. However, they will not pay a penny under the general liability portion of the policy without proof that the homeowner was actually at fault.

Businesses commonly carried medical payments coverage until recent years. When they had it, it would reimburse medical expenses up to the limits of their medical payments coverage even if their insured was not proven to have any fault. Understandably, many people confuse a business insurer agreeing to pay medical expenses from their med-pay coverage with some obligation to also pay other expenses, including pain and suffering, from their general liability coverage. It does not work that way. Liability payments are made only when it is proven that the business was negligent in causing someone's injury. This is further complicated by the fact that it is now rare for businesses to carry med- pay at all. Even when they have good liability coverage, they commonly carry no medical payments coverage.

Most big box stores, supermarkets, and apartment complexes are self-insured, meaning they pay claims from their own business revenue. Many will carry excess insurance coverage, which would only be available after the self insured limits have been exhausted. All claims below the excess insurance are paid by the business directly. Self-insured businesses will occasionally agree to pay for an emergency room visit. However, they virtually never pay for continuing medical expenses as they are incurred. Any payment they make after an initial emergency room visit, would be based on their agreeing they were liable and making a settlement of the entire claim.

Businesses still remain liable when they negligently breach their duty of reasonable care, causing someone's injury. Our firm vigorously pursues these cases on behalf of our clients against both insured and self-insured property owners, seeking all damages recoverable, including compensation for pain and suffering, as well as medical expenses incurred in the past and those which will be suffered in the future.

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