When you get injured on someone else's property, you may not be responsible to pay for the injuries you sustain. If you were injured due to someone else's carelessness or negligence, they are at fault for your injuries. Before you go knocking someone's door down demanding that they pay you for your injuries, you need to make sure that you have looked at your own responsibility in causing your injuries. Depending on what you did to contribute to your injuries, you might not get any help in paying for your hospital bills. 

Types of Liability

The law will look at who is most at fault for your injuries. Anything you did to knowingly put yourself in harm's way will determine how much you have to pay. The following scenarios will help you to determine where liability lies:

1. If you trespass onto a property and then get hurt, the property owner is not responsible for injuries that you receive. Similarly, if you are invited to a property and then go where you don't have permission to go, you are at fault. 

2. If you go to a property to participate in activities that could easily lead to injury, you cannot then blame someone else for putting yourself in harm's way. 

3. If someone else puts you in harm's way, but you also took steps to create the problem, then you will likely share responsibility. 

4. If you get hurt on someone's property because the owner did not take proper steps to maintain the property, the homeowner's negligence contributed to your injuries, and as long as you did not take steps that put yourself in harm's way, the property owner will be responsible for your injuries. 

5. If you are injured by a defective product, then both the manufacturer of the product and the seller may be responsible for your injuries. 

6. If a worker causes an accident, then both the worker and the employer may be responsible for your injuries. 

When you get injured and you feel like someone else may be at fault, it is easy to let your emotions get the better of you. Before you fly off the handle and start making accusations, you need to carefully consider where the liability lies. If you are having a hard time determining whether you should file for damages in your case, you always consult with a lawyer to help sort things out. To learn more, contact Madigan & Scott Inc.