Businesses in Napa County and Sonoma County really should not cut corners when it comes to maintaining their premises. Especially if they are welcoming tourists or other customers, they should have in place a regular schedule of cleaning, inspecting and repairing their properties.
Sometimes, this is just a simple matter of, for example, changing light bulbs or the batteries on smoke detectors.
However, it is a fact of life that sometimes a business will have to make more complicated, expensive repairs. They need to budget for these repairs and should consider having insurance or other reserves for unexpected emergencies.
Poorly maintained property is a common cause of business-related injuries
Customers and other visitors to businesses frequently get hurt, sometimes very seriously, because of poorly maintained property.
Poor maintenance is a common reason for slips-and-falls and similar injuries. For example, if a business’s lights are not working or if the flooring or pavement around the business is in bad shape, then a visitor might not notice a tripping hazard and fall.
In other situations, a poorly constructed or maintained building can lead to fire or a partial collapse.
To give a couple of examples, a bad wiring job or simple neglect of electrical problems can spark a fire at a business or could lead to a major electrical accident. Poorly constructed decks and other structures tend to give way suddenly while people are using them.
Negligent maintenance can even expose patrons of a business to violent crime. Criminals will take advantage of the fact that a business’s lights, cameras or other security features do not appear to be working correctly.
In these sorts of situations, California businesses may be legally responsible for overlooking important repairs and maintenance.
Victims who suffer injuries because of these oversights may have the option to file a personal injury lawsuit against the business to recover their medical bills, lost wages and other compensation for their losses.