Philadelphia Collapsing Porch Lawyers
Every year, hundreds of thousands of people will be catastrophically injured or killed due to the collapse of a balcony, porch, deck, or railing failure. In warm weather, a balcony or deck is likely to become a gathering spot for friends and guests during parties or barbeques. Unfortunately, many porches, balconies, decks, and railing structures are inadequately designed, engineered, constructed, or improperly maintained, often resulting in a catastrophic failure due to its inability to support weight. When a balcony or porch fails, generally the results are not insignificant. Victims can fall and be buried under debris and often catastrophic injuries such as broken bones, spinal injuries, paraesthesia, quadriplegia, brain injuries, and closed head trauma can result. Typically, as a wooden deck gets older, there is a breakdown in the material particularly when it is not properly treated or maintained. Surveys indicate that there are over 50,000 million wooden decks in the United States that are over 25 years old. Many such decks or balconies are accidents waiting to happen.
When a balcony, deck, porch, or railing collapses, specialized skill and knowledge of the law is required. Most deck, porch, and railing collapse cases involve theories of negligence, premises liability, product liability, and construction law. The experienced Pennsylvania premises liability lawyers of Reiff & Bily understand that when most people step on a deck, porch, or balcony, they assume it is safe to support their weight and that the railing or guard system is safe as well.
Each year, our skilled Philadelphia accident lawyers learn of balcony falls, railing collapses, and material failures. Many times during spring break and the holiday season, falls are fueled by alcohol and other improper behavior and crowd overloading on the deck. Just recently, we received an inquiry from an individual who fell due to a railing collapse at a South Jersey motel and suffered catastrophic injuries. A landlord or hotel operator or possessor of property owes a duty to make sure that one’s premises are safe and that the balcony and railing are installed and maintained in accordance with appropriate codes insuring one’s safety. This requires a regular inspection and maintenance program. Many times, balconies and porches are erected in violation of local codes and regulations. Obviously this presents a hazard if rules and regulations are not followed. A balcony railing must be at least 42 inches high and have no more than 4 inches of space between the rails and must always be maintained in proper safe and secure order. Whenever you venture onto a balcony, you should always make sure by a simple test that it is fixated and secure. If you have young children, make sure that they cannot squeeze between the rails and never, ever leave a child on a balcony unsupervised. If a porch, deck, balcony, or railing does not look right, immediately leave the balcony for safer surroundings and report your concerns to the owner to avoid the potential for catastrophic injury or wrongful death.
The experienced Pennsylvania defective balcony lawyers of Reiff & Bily have had significant experience with a successful track record representing those who were injured as a result of porch collapses, balcony collapses, porch falls, railing failures, or other premises liability situations at hotels, homes, condominiums, apartments, or on the premises of another. Contact us toll free at 1-800-421-9595 or online at www.reiffandbily.com for a free, no obligation consultation. We promise we will never charge a fee unless we make a successful recovery on your behalf.
