Premises Liability Lawyer in Texas

If you were seriously hurt on someone else’s property, you may have questions about who is responsible and whether you have a case. Texas premises liability law may apply, but these cases aren’t as simple as proving you got hurt on someone else’s property.

The law looks at what caused the injury, who owned or controlled the property, why you were there, what the responsible party knew about the danger, and whether they failed to take reasonable steps to protect you.

If you’re dealing with the aftermath of an injury on someone else’s property, you need straight answers and a legal team that knows how to handle serious cases. For over 35 years, Grossman Law Offices has fought for injured Texans and recovered millions of dollars for clients. Our Texas premises liability lawyers can investigate what happened, identify all at-fault parties, and work to recover the money you’re entitled to.

In this article, we’ll break down Texas premises liability law in plain language. We’ll cover the duties property owners owe visitors, who may be held responsible, what compensation may be available, and how long you have to file a lawsuit.

What Is Premises Liability?

Premises liability is a type of personal injury case involving unsafe conditions on someone else’s property.

But getting hurt on someone else’s property doesn’t automatically mean you have a case. There needs to be a connection between the dangerous condition and your injury.

If you have a medical emergency while shopping at a grocery store, the store usually isn’t responsible just because it happened there. If you slip on a spill that employees knew about and didn’t warn customers about, though, you may have a premises liability claim.

These cases can happen in plenty of places, including stores, homes, apartment complexes, hotels, parking lots, restaurants, construction sites, and offices.

What Types of Hazards Can Lead to Premises Liability Claims?

Premises liability claims can come from all kinds of dangerous conditions. Common examples include:

• Slips, trips, and falls
• Broken stairs or handrails
• Uneven sidewalks or flooring
• Falls from balconies, roofs, or other elevated areas
• Falling objects or merchandise
• Swimming pool accidents
• Dog bites and other animal attacks
• Dangerous construction defects
• Poor lighting
• Unsafe parking lots or garages
• Dangerous activities taking place on the property
• Some injuries caused by criminal activity when reasonable security was not provided

Some of these hazards cause relatively minor injuries, while others can lead to permanent disability or death.

Where Do Premises Liability Accidents Commonly Happen?

Premises liability accidents can happen in all kinds of places, from stores and restaurants to apartment complexes and private homes.

Common locations include:

• Grocery and retail stores
• Restaurants and bars
• Hotels
• Apartment complexes
• Office buildings
• Shopping centers
• Parking lots and garages
• Swimming pools
• Construction sites
• Warehouses
• Private homes
• Rental properties
• Entertainment venues
• Churches and other religious buildings

No matter where the accident happens, the circumstances surrounding your injury will determine whether you have a premises liability claim..

Who Is Responsible for an Injury That Occurs on Someone Else’s Property?

Responsibility usually comes down to who had control over the area where you were hurt.

That could be the property owner, a business, landlord, tenant, property management company, contractor, maintenance company, or another party that agreed to inspect, repair, or maintain the property. You don’t have to own the property to be responsible for what happens there.

Take a shopping center, for example. The owner may control the building and common areas, and each store may be responsible for the space they lease. A maintenance company may also be responsible for certain areas under their contract.

Finding out who controlled the dangerous area is one of the first steps in figuring out who is to blame.

What Does an Injured Person Have to Prove?

To prove a Texas premises liability claim, you first have to show that the person responsible for the property had a duty to keep you reasonably safe and failed to do that.

A duty is a legal responsibility to use reasonable care. In Texas premises liability cases, that duty can change depending on why you were on the property.

Visitors usually fit into one of three groups: invitees, licensees, or trespassers. Each group comes with different legal protections. Your visitor status affects what the property owner was expected to do to keep you safe.

If that duty was broken and you were hurt as a result, you can move to the next step – showing that the unsafe condition caused your injury. Photos, video, witness statements, maintenance records, and other evidence can help prove what happened.

How Does Visitor Status Affect Your Premises Liability Case?

As we mentioned above, Texas law doesn’t treat every visitor the same. Customers, personal guests, and people who enter without permission have different legal protections. Below, we’ll cover invitees, licensees, and trespassers and explain how each category can affect a premises liability case.

What Is an Invitee?

An invitee is someone who has permission to be on the property for a reason that benefits both sides. If you’re shopping at a store, for example, you’re usually considered an invitee.

If you’re an invitee, property owners and businesses have to take reasonable steps to find dangerous conditions, fix them, or warn you about them. They can’t just ignore a hazard and hope no one gets hurt.

Here are some other examples of invitees:

• Customers at stores, banks, malls, restaurants, hotels, and movie theaters
• Children who are with a parent or guardian
• Postal workers and meter readers
• Repair workers and contractors
• Salespeople invited onto private property
• People attending church or similar events
• Friends or relatives who come over to help with yard work, repairs, a garage sale, or another task
• Some tenants and guests of tenants
• Police officers and firefighters in certain situations when they enter for reasons unrelated to an emergency

A big question in invitee cases is whether the property owner knew, or should have known, about the danger.

Actual knowledge means they really knew the hazard was there. For example, if an employee sees a spill and tells a manager, the business may have actual knowledge. Constructive knowledge means the danger was there long enough, or was obvious enough, that a reasonable inspection should have uncovered it.

These issues can come up with broken railings, unsafe pool areas, spills, and other hazards. If the property owner knew about the danger or should have found it and didn’t fix it or warn people, they may be held liable.

What Is a Licensee?

You may be considered a licensee if you have permission to be on the property, but you’re there mainly for your own reasons. Visiting a friend at their home is one example.

If you’re a licensee, you get less protection than an invitee. The property owner usually has to warn you about dangers they know about, as long as you don’t already know about the problem. But they don’t have to inspect the property for unknown hazards.

You may also be considered a licensee if you’re visiting a relative, stopping by your workplace while off duty, cutting through a business parking lot, or entering a store for a reason that doesn’t benefit the business.

Say you’re visiting a friend and they know a basement step is loose but never warn you. If you fall and get hurt, that could support a premises liability claim. The same can be true if a dangerous object is left in a visiting child’s reach.

But if you already knew about the danger, the property owner usually doesn’t have to warn you again. That can make it much harder to hold them responsible.

What Is a Trespasser?

Trespassers are people who enter someone else’s property without permission or go somewhere they aren’t allowed to be, such as a private room or restricted part of a building.

If you’re a trespasser, Texas law gives you much less protection than an invitee or licensee. Property owners usually don’t have to inspect or fix every hazard for someone who isn’t supposed to be there.

Note: They still can’t intentionally hurt you or act with gross negligence.

There are some exceptions. Children may have more legal protection if something dangerous on the property, like an unsecured swimming pool, draws them in. Extra protections can also apply if you entered because of an emergency or ended up there by accident.

But if you break into a store and get hurt on broken glass, for example, you probably won’t have a premises liability claim.

What Is the Difference Between a Dangerous Property Condition and a Negligent Activity?

In a Texas premises liability case, one of the first questions is what actually caused your injury. Was there already a dangerous condition on the property, or did someone hurt you by acting carelessly?

A dangerous property condition is a hazard that was already there, like a broken railing, loose stair, hidden hole, wet floor, damaged sidewalk, or poorly lit area. Negligent activity is different because it involves someone doing something careless when you get hurt.

For example, if construction workers leave tools or debris in a walkway and you trip over them later, that’s a dangerous property condition. If a worker drops a box or piece of equipment on you, that may be negligent activity.

The difference can affect what you have to prove in your case.

Can a Property Owner Be Responsible for Criminal Activity?

Yes, in some cases. If a property owner had reason to expect criminal activity, they may have needed to take reasonable security steps to protect people on the property.

Past crimes can be a big part of that question. Courts may look at how often they happened, how serious they were, where they took place, and how recently they occurred.

For example, if a store had several similar robberies, that could raise questions about whether better lighting, cameras, locks, security guards, or other safety measures should have been added.

These are often called negligent security cases. The main issue is whether the risk of crime was foreseeable and whether reasonable steps could have reduced that risk.

What Injuries Do Premises Liability Accidents Cause?

A premises liability accident can leave you with anything from a broken bone to a life-changing injury.

If you fall, you could end up with knee or shoulder damage, a back or neck injury, or a head injury. Falls from stairs, balconies, roofs, or other high places can be even more serious and may lead to spinal cord damage, brain injuries, permanent disability, or death.

Other accidents can cause burns, deep cuts, crush injuries, dog bite wounds, firearm injuries, and other serious trauma. And pool accidents can lead to drowning or brain damage from a lack of oxygen.

Some injuries get better with treatment. Others can change how you work, move, care for yourself, and go about your daily life for years.

Does Homeowners’ Insurance Cover Premises Liability Claims?

It can. If you’re hurt at someone’s home, the homeowner’s insurance policy may help cover your losses.

That can make a big difference in a serious injury case. A homeowner may not have enough money or assets to pay a large claim out of pocket. And Texas law can protect certain property, including a primary residence, from being used to satisfy a judgment.

Homeowners’ liability coverage may apply to things like falls, pool accidents, dog bites, firearm injuries, and other accidents that happen at a home. What’s covered depends on the policy and the facts of the case.

Intentional acts can be harder to cover because many insurance policies exclude injuries caused on purpose.

And even if the policy applies, the insurance company can still argue that the homeowner wasn’t legally at fault. Coverage and liability are two separate questions.

What Compensation May Be Available in a Premises Liability Case?

If you were hurt because of someone else’s negligence, Texas law may allow you to recover money for both the financial losses you’ve already had and the problems the injury may cause in the future.

That can include medical bills, future treatment, lost wages, and reduced earning ability if your injuries make it harder to work. You may also be able to recover compensation for pain, mental anguish, physical limitations, and disfigurement.

If the accident resulted in death, qualifying family members may be able to pursue a wrongful death claim. Those claims can include funeral and burial costs, lost income, loss of companionship, and mental anguish.

There isn’t a set amount you can receive for a premises liability claim. The value of your case ultimately depends on how badly you were hurt, how long your recovery takes, whether you can return to work, how much insurance is available, and how fault is divided.

Can Your Own Actions Affect Your Compensation?

Yes. If you were partly to blame for the accident, that can reduce how much compensation you can recover.

In cases like these, Texas uses a proportionate responsibility rule. So, if you were awarded $100,000 and found to be 20% responsible for the accident, your recovery would be reduced to $80,000. If you’re found to be more than 50% responsible, Texas law generally prevents you from recovering damages from the other responsible parties.

Insurance companies may try to pin as much blame on you as they can. They might say the hazard was obvious, that you already knew about it, or that you caused the accident yourself.

That’s where solid evidence can push back. Surveillance footage, photos, witness statements, inspection records, and maintenance records can help show what really happened.

What Steps Should You Take If You Are Injured on Someone Else’s Property?

If you’re hurt on someone else’s property, get checked out by a doctor first. Some injuries take hours or even days to show up. And you’ll need medical records to tie those injuries back to the accident.

Next, tell the property owner, manager, landlord, employee, or whoever is in charge what happened. Ask them to write it down. That gives you a record showing when and where the accident happened.

If the hazard is still there, take photos or video before someone cleans it up, fixes it, or removes it. Get pictures of your injuries and the surrounding area too. Those details can make it much harder for someone to downplay your injuries later.

If anyone saw the accident, get their name and contact information. Their account can back up your version of events. You should also hold onto medical bills, receipts, and wage records so you can show what the injury has cost you.

Be careful with the insurance company. An adjuster may ask for a recorded statement or push you to accept some of the blame before you even know what’s going on.

Evidence has a way of vanishing once people start cleaning up and moving on. As time passes, records are overwritten, repairs are made, and witnesses become harder to find. In serious cases, premises liability lawyers can send preservation requests and take other steps to preserve evidence before it disappears.

How Long Do You Have to File a Premises Liability Lawsuit in Texas?

In most Texas premises liability cases, you have two years from the date of the accident to file a lawsuit. That deadline is called the statute of limitations.

There are exceptions, including some cases involving minors or government entities, but don’t count on having extra time.

Two years can sound like plenty of time, but putting off your case can make it much harder to prove. The longer you wait, the harder it may be to piece together exactly what happened and build a strong claim.

The filing deadline isn’t the only clock running. As time passes, it can get harder to pin down what happened, track down the people involved, and show what the property looked like when you were hurt.

Missing just one important deadline can prevent you from pursuing compensation, even if the evidence would otherwise support your claim.

Why Might You Need to File a Lawsuit?

You may need to file a lawsuit if the property owner or insurance company refuses to accept responsibility or won’t offer fair compensation.

A lawsuit can also give you access to evidence you may not be able to get otherwise. That can include inspection reports, maintenance records, contracts, prior complaints, and testimony from employees or other witnesses.

Filing a lawsuit doesn’t automatically mean your case will go to trial. But it gives you a formal way to push the case forward when the other side won’t cooperate or pay what your claim is worth.

Why Hire a Premises Liability Lawyer in Texas?

Insurance companies don’t make money by paying every claim at full value. They may question your injuries, downplay what the accident has cost you, or push for a quick settlement before you know your case’s true value.

Premises liability attorneys can take over those conversations, keep the claim on track, and make sure the insurance company doesn’t control the process. They can also put a real number on your losses, including future medical care, lost earning ability, and other costs that can add up over time.

If the insurance company comes to you with a lowball offer or denies the claim, your attorneys can push back, negotiate for more, and take the case to court if that’s what it takes.

Contact Grossman Law Offices Today

If you were seriously hurt because of an unsafe property condition, you may be dealing with medical treatment, missed work, a growing pile of bills, and an insurance company that isn’t making things any easier.

Grossman Law Offices has spent more than 35 years helping injured Texans through serious personal injury cases. We know how overwhelming these situations can get, and we don’t expect you to figure everything out on your own.

When you work with us, you’ll have direct access to your attorney and a team that keeps you informed about your case. You’ll know what’s happening, what your options are, and what comes next.

Our team is available 24/7, and your initial case evaluation is free. If you or someone you love was seriously injured on someone else’s property, contact Grossman Law Offices today and tell us what happened.