Property owners and businesses in South Carolina must take reasonable steps to protect the people they invite onto their property. That means fixing dangerous conditions, or at least alerting visitors to them. When an owner cuts corners on maintenance or ignores a known problem, people get hurt.
These cases are hard to prove in South Carolina. It is not enough to show that you fell. You have to show the owner knew, or should have known, about the hazard and did not deal with it. Pruitt & Pruitt has handled premises liability claims for injured people in the Upstate for decades, and we know where to look for the evidence that answers that question.
Property hazards we see
- Slip, trip and fall on wet, slick or uneven surfaces
- Wet tile in entryways, restrooms and store aisles
- Broken stairs, loose railings and poor lighting
- Buried cables, potholes and cracked pavement
- Defective conditions and poor maintenance
- Environmental problems on the property
- Unsafe swimming pools and pool decks
Where these injuries happen
We see falls and property injuries in grocery stores, discount retailers, parking lots, private homes, apartments and condos, and hotels. A spill nobody cleaned up, a rug that bunches at the door, a dark stairwell or a cracked curb can be enough to cause a serious injury.
Those injuries range from soft tissue sprains and strains to broken bones, head injuries and spinal injuries. A fall that looks minor at first can lead to months of treatment, so it is worth having a doctor check you out right away.
What you have to prove
The key question in most premises cases is what the owner knew. Did the owner create the hazard, know about it, or let it sit long enough that a reasonable inspection would have found it? We work to answer that with facts: incident reports, surveillance video, cleaning and inspection logs, prior complaints, maintenance records, photos and witness statements.
Some of that evidence does not last. Stores often keep video for a limited time, and spills get mopped up. If you can, report the fall before you leave, take photos of what caused it, get the names of anyone who saw it, and keep the shoes and clothes you were wearing.
No fee unless we recover
Your first consultation is free. We handle premises liability cases on a contingency fee, so there is no attorney fee unless we recover money for you. We will look at what happened and tell you honestly whether we think you have a claim.
