Invitees

Invitees receive the highest level of protection from the law. Property owners must:

1. Use reasonable care in maintaining their premises in a reasonably safe condition;
2. Warn invitees about concealed dangers they know or should have known about which the invitee does not know about and could not discover using due care.

Trespassers

Finally, trespassers are those people who should not have been on the premises at all. They are owed the same minimal duty of care as uninvited licensees. The one exception is children. If a property owner knows that children might trespass on their land, due to some feature a child might be drawn to, the owner may be liable for injuries the child might sustain.

After determining the level of care the defendant owed you, you must then figure out if the defendant did not meet that level of care (such as failing to repair something or failing to give a warning). As a trespasser, you may only have a claim if:

1. You were acting reasonable at the time you were hurt;
2. The defendant did meet the required level of care;
3. The issue was foreseeable; and
4. You were harmed because of the defendant’s action or inaction.

The level of complexity of premises liability suits makes it critical that you see a licensed, experienced personal injury attorney as soon as you think you may have a claim.

Statute of limitations

In Florida, the statute of limitations for premises liability claims (and personal injury claims in general) is four years from the date of the injury. It’s important, however, to get an experienced attorney’s help right away, to ensure that you preserve vital evidence.