Property owners have a responsibility to ensure their properties are safe from foreseeable criminal activity, and can potentially be held responsible if someone is injured on their property due to a preventable crime. Here are seven ways that lax security can potentially led to an accidental injury:
- Inadequate lighting
- One of the most common, and often underestimated, issues that relates to security is whether a property has enough lighting. When a property is poorly lit, it can encourage criminals to attack tenants or visitors, since they know it is much easier to sneak up on victims and much harder to identify them.
- Lack of functional cameras
- Security cameras may not directly prevent or catch criminals, but they do go a long way towards deterring criminals who may not want to be caught. Without adequate cameras, it is easy for a crime to happen without the perpetrator being caught.
- Lack of functional alarm system
- Alarm systems are incredibly commonplace, helping to warn against potential break-ins that might indicate a burglary or home invasion. If an alarm system is absent or non-functional, however, it will do little to prevent an accidental injury.
- Lack of security guards
- There are few things that are as good at preventing a crime as the presence of a security guard, who can intervene in the event of a robbery or assault. When a property lacks security guards, criminals may feel free to rob or assault people, resulting in a risk of injury.
- Ineffective or inadequate training
- Of course, this assumes that any security you have on staff will be properly trained to handle potentially violent criminals. If your staff are poorly trained, they may do very little to deter criminals from carrying out their crimes.
- Broken or missing locks
- Ideally, any doors or windows on a property that lead into a store or private residence should be in good condition. When the locks are broken or missing, however, criminals can quite literally walk in, potentially causing harm to victims in the process.
- Lack of bars on windows
- In areas where burglaries are particularly common, having bars over windows is a sensible way of preventing potential break-ins. Thus, when a property owner fails to have bars on windows in these sorts of areas, it may be considered a failure of security.
If you or someone you know has been injured or sickened as a result of someone else’s negligence, contact the New York personal injury lawyers at the Katter Law Firm. We will help you protect your rights and get the compensation you deserve. To schedule a consultation, contact us at 212-809-4293, or visit our contact page.