Boston Injury Lawyer Blog
According to a new report published by the Boston Herald, at least 20% of elevators in Massachusetts (an estimated 8,500) have not had their yearly safety inspections, as required by law. The Herald says that while the numbers are high, a state safety watchdog anticipates those figures are “low-balling” the issue.
As of March 2015, state official had evaluated just shy of 80% of about 41,000 elevators in Massachusetts, according to the Herald who had obtained documents from the Department of Public Safety. That means that approximately 8,600 elevators have not been properly inspected this year.
It seems this problem is ongoing; the Herald reported that State Auditor Suzanne Bump had taken issue with the public safety department back in November 2014, after an audit revealed that some 14,200 elevators had expired inspection certificates.
“Our audit found that, in addition to backlogs in inspections, DPS’s record keeping database was inaccurate,” Bump said in a statement to the Herald. She pointed out that in dozens of elevators her investigators checked, more than half had certificates with different information than the public safety department’s database.
“While we certainly hope their inspection rate is improving,” Bump said, “we don’t know if these recent reports are accurate.” (bostonherald.com)
Officials have claimed that they will hire more elevator inspectors, but as of last week, the Herald reported, they had just 55—just one more since May 2014 when a woman was seriously injured when she fell down an elevator shaft at Fenway Park.
Under Massachusetts state law, business and property owners are responsible for ensuring that their property is safe and free of potential hazards that could cause harm to guests or patrons of said property.
The most common types of premises liability cases include slip- and trip-and-fall accidents, caused by spills, broken staircases, uneven pavement, broken or defective railings, etc. But there are many other types of incidents that may fall under premises liability.
When a person becomes injured as the result of a property owner’s negligence, that victim may be entitled to receiving compensation for his or her injuries, including payment for medical bills (including hospital or doctors visits), after-care (such as physical therapy), lost wages (if the injury prevented the victim from returning to work over a certain period of time), and compensation for pain and suffering of the injury.
Those who have been injured as the result of unsafe property are strongly advised to consult a legal professional to discuss his or her rights for filing a premises liability claim. What many do not know is that the estate owner is responsible for any injuries that occur on his or her property.
Filing a premises liability claim is not easy and dealing with insurance companies can be confusing and often frustrating. At the law offices of Altman & Altman, LLP, our dedicated team of personal injury attorneys has nearly 50 years of experience handling all types of premises liability cases and advocating on our clients’ behalves. We pride ourselves in our track record of successful verdicts and achieving settlements that our clients deserve.
If you or a loved one was injured on another’s property and have questions about filing a premises liability case, call our office today to schedule a case evaluation with one of our trusted attorneys. All consultations are completely free and confidential.
Original article from BostonHerald.com
