Recent Blog Posts
Homeowner Liability to Workers
Homeowner Liability to Workers Injured on Your Property
So far we’ve talked about your recourse against a contractor if you are injured by faulty repair work, but what if the worker is injured on your property and sues you? As a property owner, you owe a duty to provide a reasonably safe premises for those lawfully on your property, but your exact duty differs
Injured Due to Faulty Home Repair? Get Money Damages through a Civil Tort Claim.
In a previous post we examined the contractual liability of a home repair professional and your ability to recover money damages when a repair job is not done properly. In this post, we’ll talk about another type of liability, civil or tort liability. This type of liability arises if you are injured in your home because of work which was performed negligently or incompetently.
Home Professionals should be Professional, and They can be Held Liable When They Aren’t
If you perform home repair and maintenance yourself but don’t do a bang-up job, you’ve no one to blame but yourself. If you hire a professional, on the other hand, you expect a professional quality of work and can enforce your contractual rights to see that the work is done correctly or you get your money back. What’s more, if a repair done is negligently and someone in your household winds up injured because of that negligence…
Do Carbon Monoxide Detectors Have Expiration Dates?
You might think that your carbon monoxide (CO) alarm will go on forever so long as you replace the batteries as needed, but this is not so. In fact, most models have only a ten-year life span. Since 2009, standards for carbon monoxide alarms (UL 2034) have required the alarms to include warnings when they are approaching their end of useful life, although many models had this feature for years before then…
Sidewalks from Coast to Coast
Is your beautiful sidewalk buckling as tree roots push their way up from underneath? Are there loose or missing bricks, or is there a sinkhole obscured by standing water? Or is it simply covered with snow and ice after a winter storm? If someone slips or trips and falls on the sidewalk, they can suffer painful injuries, from sprained wrists and twisted ankles to serious head or back injuries or broken bones…
Own a Pool? Then You Better Own a Fence Too.
Unless you live where it’s warm year-round or can withstand the bone-chilling costs of heating your pool in the winter, the arrival of summer likely heralds the opening of swim season in your backyard. If you have recently installed a pool – above-ground or in-ground – or purchased a home that comes with a pool, make sure you are up to speed on local laws in your area requiring adequate fencing and other measures to keep people, and especially children, safe in and around your pool…
Your Liability to Maintain a Safe Premises for Others on Your Property
You invite some friends and neighbors over for a social gathering, and someone stumbles and falls because of a broken piece of concrete on your walkway. Are you going to be sued by your friend or neighbor? It probably depends on how good a friend they are, how badly they were hurt, and how much homeowners’ insurance you have. Maintaining your home’s sidewalk, driveway, entryway and porch in a safe condition can help prevent trip and fall accidents…
Who Pays for Fence Repair and Maintenance?
In a previous post, we discussed how state laws, local ordinances, and HOA CC&Rs can all come into play regarding your duties to establish, maintain and repair fences on your property, as well as what types of fences you can and can’t have. Unless you live in an isolated rural area, chances are you share at least one fence, and maybe two or three, with an adjoining property owner…
No Offense, but Know a Fence before You Repair or Replace it
Good fences make good neighbors, or so the saying goes. Having a sturdy, attractive fence in place can increase your home’s value, help protect you from a home invasion, and also help secure your property rights by firmly establishing the boundary of your property. If you are new to home ownership or simply haven’t thought about it before, building or repairing a fence is not as simple as it seems…
Not All Black Mold is Toxic, and Not All Toxic Mold is Black
Let’s face it. Mold has a bad reputation, and deservedly so (penicillin and blue cheese notwithstanding). The greatest fear and loathing of all is reserved for black mold, but why? Maybe just saying “mold” isn’t scary enough, but “black mold” reminds us of the Black Death or the Black Plague of the middle ages. Black mold truly can be toxic and quite dangerous to your health. But the truth is that not all black mold is toxic, and not all toxic mold is black…
