You went to a shop in Broad Ripple, an apartment, or a friend’s home in Fountain Square expecting to leave the same way you arrived. If a broken stair, an unmarked spill, or a dark parking lot left you hurt instead, an Indianapolis premises liability lawyer at Hurst Limontes can help you hold the property owner responsible.
Since 1981, our firm has helped injured people across Indianapolis recover compensation for medical bills, lost income, and pain caused by unsafe property. Call (317) 636-0808 any time for a free consultation.
Who Is Liable for an Injury on Someone Else’s Property in Indiana?
In Indiana, liability depends largely on why you were on the property. Owners owe the highest duty of reasonable care to invitees, a lesser duty to licensees, and usually only a duty not to willfully or wantonly harm trespassers.
Indiana courts sort visitors into these three groups, and the label can decide the case.
| Visitor Status | Common Examples | What the Owner Generally Owes |
|---|---|---|
| Invitee | Shoppers Restaurant and bar customers Hotel guests Tenants in common areas Invited social guests |
Reasonable care to keep the property safe, including inspecting for, fixing, or warning about hazards |
| Licensee | People on the property with permission but for their own purposes, such as someone cutting through a lot | No willful or wanton harm, and a warning about hidden dangers that the owner actually knows about |
| Trespasser | People on the property without permission | Generally only a duty not to harm them willfully or wantonly, with added protection for children in some cases |
One point surprises many Hoosiers: in the 1991 case Burrell v. Meads, the Indiana Supreme Court held that invited social guests are treated as invitees. That means a homeowner who invites you to a cookout owes you the same reasonable care a business owes its customers.
What Do You Have to Prove in an Indiana Premises Liability Claim?
To recover as an invitee, you generally need to show the owner knew or should have known about a dangerous condition and failed to take reasonable steps to address it.
Proving that usually requires connecting four pieces:
- Duty: The owner or occupier owed you a duty based on your visitor status.
- Knowledge: The owner knew about the hazard, created it, or would have found it with reasonable inspection.
- Failure to act: The owner did not fix the hazard or warn you about it within a reasonable time.
- Harm: The hazard caused your injuries and losses.
Property owners and their insurers often argue that you should have seen the hazard. Under Indiana’s comparative fault law, your compensation can be reduced by your share of fault. If you’re more than 50% at fault, though, you can’t recover any money at all.
Where Does Premises Liability Apply in Indianapolis?
Premises liability claims can arise anywhere a property owner or other responsible party fails to address an unsafe condition. In Indianapolis, that can include properties throughout Downtown, Broad Ripple, Fountain Square, and Irvington, as well as busy commercial areas around Castleton Square, Washington Square, and the Fashion Mall at Keystone.
Common locations include:
- Stores and shopping centers: Grocery stores, big-box retailers, malls, and other businesses can have hazards in aisles, entrances, sidewalks, and parking areas.
- Restaurants and entertainment venues: Spills, damaged flooring, poor lighting, and unsafe stairs can put customers at risk.
- Apartments: Landlords and property managers may be responsible for dangerous stairwells, hallways, sidewalks, and other common areas.
- Parking lots: Potholes, ice, poor lighting, and damaged walking surfaces can cause falls and other injuries, and premises liability in parking lots often turns on who maintained the lot.
- Hotels, gyms, and pools: Guests can encounter unsafe flooring, poorly maintained equipment, unsecured pool areas, and other hazards.
- Private homes: Premises liability can also apply when an invited guest is injured because of a dangerous condition at a home.
Who controls the area matters as much as who owns it. A landlord, property management company, tenant business, or contractor may be responsible depending on who created the hazard or had a duty to address it.
An Indianapolis premises liability attorney can help you determine who’s responsible for your injuries.
Slips, Trips, and Falls
Spills, icy walkways, loose rugs, broken stairs, and missing handrails can cause serious falls. In Indianapolis slip and fall claims, your lawyer can investigate how long the hazard existed, whether the responsible party knew or should have known about it, and whether reasonable steps were taken to fix it or warn visitors.
Falling Objects
Merchandise stacked too high or stored carelessly can fall on shoppers below. An Indianapolis premises liability lawyer can review surveillance footage, store procedures, witness statements, and other evidence to determine how the merchandise was stored and who was responsible for keeping the area safe.
Negligent Security
An assault or other violent incident can lead to a premises liability claim when the property owner or another responsible party failed to take reasonable security measures under the circumstances. Your lawyer can investigate prior incidents, lighting, locks, security procedures, and other evidence that may show whether the danger was foreseeable.
Swimming Pool Injuries
Apartment, hotel, and other property pools can become dangerous when gates, decking, lighting, or other safety features are not properly maintained. An attorney can investigate the condition of the pool area, applicable safety requirements, and whether the property owner or manager failed to address a hazard that contributed to the injury.
How Much Is My Indianapolis Premises Liability Case Worth?
The value of a premises case depends on how serious your injuries are, how they affect your work and daily life, and how clearly the evidence shows the owner’s negligence. A minor sprain may resolve for a modest amount, while a fall that leads to surgery or permanent limits can be worth far more.
Depending on the facts of your case, compensation may include:
- Medical expenses: Past and future costs for treatment, surgery, rehabilitation, medication, and other care related to your injuries.
- Lost wages: Income you lost because your injuries kept you from working.
- Reduced earning ability: Future income you may lose if your injuries limit the work you can do.
- Pain and suffering: Compensation for the physical pain and discomfort caused by your injuries.
- Emotional distress: Compensation for the emotional effects of the accident and your injuries.
- Loss of enjoyment of life: Compensation when your injuries keep you from hobbies, activities, or parts of daily life you previously enjoyed.
- Punitive damages: In rare cases involving especially reckless conduct, a court may award punitive damages. Indiana caps these awards and directs most of the payment to a state fund rather than to the injured person.
Steps to Take After a Premises Accident in Indianapolis
After a premises accident in Indianapolis, get medical care, document what happened, and preserve key information that you already have. We can identify who controlled the property and flesh out your claim with additional evidence.
If the property belongs to Indianapolis, Marion County, another local government, or the State of Indiana, special notice rules can apply. Indiana generally requires notice within 180 days for claims against a local government and 270 days for claims against the state.
A few steps can help protect your claim:
- Get medical care: Follow through with treatment and keep records of your injuries and expenses.
- Document what happened: Report the incident, photograph the hazard and surrounding area, and get contact information for any witnesses.
- Preserve evidence: Keep the shoes and clothing you were wearing, and act quickly to preserve surveillance footage before it is recorded over.
- Talk with a lawyer: An Indianapolis premises liability lawyer can check your deadlines and deal with the property owner’s insurer for you.
Why Injured Hoosiers Choose Hurst Limontes
Hurst Limontes has represented injured Hoosiers from our Indianapolis office since 1981. Our eight attorneys focus on injury cases, and we prepare each premises claim with the evidence a jury would want to see.
When you work with our Indianapolis premises liability attorneys, you can expect:
- Fast evidence work: We move to secure video, incident reports, and maintenance records before they disappear.
- Free consultations: Learn about your options for free.
- 24/7 availability: Reach us whenever questions come up.
- Direct communication: We handle the insurance company so you can focus on recovery.
In one recent result, our client was attacked by other patrons at a nightclub while staff stood nearby and didn’t step in, and a $798,000 judgment was awarded before the case settled later. Every case is different, and past results do not guarantee a similar outcome.
Call (317) 636-0808 to talk with our team about your premises injury.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Homeowner’s Insurance Pay if I Get Hurt at Someone’s House in Indiana?
Most homeowner’s and renter’s policies include liability coverage that pays injury claims when the homeowner was negligent. Claims usually go through the insurer rather than coming out of a friend’s or relative’s pocket.
Can I Sue My Landlord for an Injury at My Indianapolis Apartment Complex?
You may have a claim if you were hurt in an area the landlord controls, such as a stairwell, hallway, parking lot, or pool. Injuries inside your own unit are harder to pursue and often depend on whether the landlord kept control of the problem or failed to make a repair it was responsible for.
What if a Wet Floor Sign Was Posted Where I Fell?
A posted sign doesn’t automatically end an Indiana premises claim. The question is whether the warning and the owner’s other steps were reasonable, such as where the sign stood, whether it was visible, and how long the spill was left in place.
What if I Did Not Report My Fall to the Store Right Away?
You can still have a valid claim, but delays make the evidence harder to gather. Report the incident as soon as you can, write down what you remember, and ask an Indianapolis premises liability lawyer to request any video before it’s erased.
Can a Child Who Was Hurt on Someone Else’s Property in Indiana Bring a Claim?
A parent or guardian can usually pursue a claim on a child’s behalf. Indiana law can also give extra protection to young children drawn onto property by a dangerous feature, even when they were not invited.
Talk With an Indianapolis Premises Liability Lawyer Today
Alexander Limontes, Indianapolis Premises Liability Attorney
An Indiana premises liability claim can become harder to prove as video is erased, hazards are repaired, and witnesses become harder to find. Getting legal help early can give your lawyer more time to preserve evidence, identify who controlled the property, and deal with the insurance company.
Attorney Alexander J. Limontes and the team at Hurst Limontes are ready to listen and explain your options. Call (317) 636-0808 for a free consultation, or visit us at 50 S. Meridian St., Suite 600, Indianapolis, IN 46204. You can also explore all Indianapolis injury practice areas we handle.