Hazardous Condition Investigations

Our Experienced Premises Liability Lawyers Explain Your Legal Options

Under South Carolina law, property owners and managers have a legal responsibility to maintain a reasonably safe environment for their visitors. When they fail to identify or repair a dangerous condition, innocent people can suffer life-altering injuries. In Rock Hill and throughout York County, “hazardous conditions” are a leading cause of preventable hospitalizations, often leaving victims with mounting medical debt and physical pain.

When an injury is caused by a property owner’s negligence whether at a local retail shop, a private residence, or a public space you have the right to seek compensation. At FCW Law, our dedicated premises liability team understands the complexities of proving “notice” and liability in hazardous condition cases across the Upstate.

Understanding Common Hazardous Property Conditions

A hazardous condition is any unsafe state on a property that poses an unreasonable risk of harm to others. These conditions are rarely accidental; they are typically the result of deferred maintenance or a failure to warn.

Slippery Surfaces: This includes uncleaned spills in grocery stores, freshly mopped floors without warning signs, or ice accumulation on walkways near Dave Lyle Boulevard shopping centers.
Structural Defects: Broken handrails, crumbling stairs, uneven floorboards, and rippled carpeting can easily cause a visitor to lose their balance.
Inadequate Lighting: Poorly lit stairwells or parking lots can hide physical hazards and create environments where criminal activity is more likely to occur.
Falling Objects: Improperly stacked merchandise in big-box retailers or loose construction debris can cause severe head and neck injuries.

Proving Liability in Rock Hill Premises Liability Claims

To win a case involving a hazardous condition in South Carolina, it is not enough to show that you were injured. You must prove that the property owner knew or should have known about the danger.

1. Actual Notice –The owner was directly informed of the hazard (e.g., a customer told a manager about a spill) but failed to act.
2. Constructive Notice –The hazard existed for such a length of time that the owner should have discovered it through reasonable inspection.
3. Creation of the Hazard – The property owner or an employee directly created the dangerous condition, such as leaving a cleaning bucket in a dark aisle.

Why You Need a Hazardous Condition Attorney

Insurance companies for property owners often try to shift the blame to the victim, arguing that the hazard was “open and obvious.” Our legal team at FCW Law works to counter these tactics with aggressive investigation.

A Rock Hill premises liability lawyer from FCW Law will:

Secure Critical Evidence: We act quickly to preserve surveillance footage from local businesses before it is overwritten and interview witnesses who saw the condition firsthand.
Conduct Scene Investigations: We document the exact measurements of defects, such as the height of a sidewalk crack or the lumens of a dark parking lot.
Calculate Long-Term Costs: We account for current medical bills as well as future rehabilitation, lost earning capacity, and the psychological impact of a traumatic fall.

Contact Our Hazardous Condition Attorney Today

If you or a loved one has been injured due to a dangerous condition on someone else’s property, don’t wait to seek legal help. Property owners often fix hazards immediately after an accident occurs, making it vital to document the scene as soon as possible.

Call our Rock Hill office today or contact us online to schedule your free, no-obligation case evaluation. We represent injury victims on a contingency fee basis, meaning you pay nothing unless we recover compensation for you.

Call the Law Offices of Wilkerson, Jones & Wilkerson today