How to Protect Your Business From Personal Injury Claims & Lawsuits

What To Do If Your Business Gets Sued For Personal Injury

After consulting with a personal injury attorney, even the most well-run and well-managed businesses are not safe from getting sued for personal injury. These lawsuits do not only hurt the company’s finances but can also potentially damage its reputation in the industry.

When someone gets injured within your business premises, chances are they will hire a personal injury lawyer to file claims. Although personal injury claims are a looming risk to any business that welcomes people into its premises, it’s not entirely unavoidable.

From getting covered to hiring a competent Mesa business lawyer; these measures will help you minimize your business’ chances of vulnerability to personal injury claims and lawsuits.

Get A Business Liability Insurance Policy

No matter how big or small your business is, you need to purchase enough general liability insurance policy to protect it against personal injury claims for accidents that occurred within your business premises.

Business liability insurance policies are actually not that expensive, especially when you consider the amount of protection they provide. The premiums start at less than a thousand dollars per year, and may increase according to the nature of your business and the level of coverage you seek.

General Liability Insurance Usually Covers:

Damages to other people’s property (including electronics and digital data) that you or your employees caused
Third-party claims (including medical expenses) for bodily injuries
Third-party claims resulting from libel or slander
Third-party claims due to copyright infringement
Defense and legal costs in case of lawsuits

Your general liability coverage, however, will not cover employee workplace accidents and damage to your own property. You will also need worker’s compensation insurance and commercial property insurance to protect your business interests against these liabilities, consider reading this guide for choosing a criminal defense lawyer which will help you a lot.

Getting all the necessary insurance coverage is the best business decision you’ll ever make. From time to time, you may wonder why you keep paying for something that you probably won’t use – ever. But should an accident happen in your place of business and you get sued (and you realize how much it’s going to cost you), you will be very thankful that you’re covered.

Create A Liability Waiver

Many businesses post warning signs of specific dangers in their premises, often even stating that they won’t be responsible for injuries sustained by visitors or customers. But while these warnings are intended to prevent or avert lawsuits, they hold very little weight in court.

Instead of plastering hazard signs all over the place, ask your employees and customers to sign a liability waiver or release form. The waiver serves to inform and educate them of the hazards involved with specific activities. By acknowledging in writing that they understand and accept the risks, they also waive their right to sue your business in case of an accident or injuries related to the activity.

You can find plenty of liability waiver samples online, and many of them can be purchased at a relatively low price. However, the forms on the Internet are tailored to your business or its operations. You’ll want to ask a skilled business attorney to craft your liability waiver to ensure that it protects your business’ interests and meets state requirements.

Manage Business Accidents Properly

You can’t tell when an accident might happen, so you always have to be prepared. According to a professional injury lawyer, like Mike Morse, as the business owner, you must know how to properly respond to emergencies when they happen because how you handle the situation may determine whether you get sued or not. Moreover, a negligent business is likely to lose a personal injury lawsuit.

In the event of a workplace accident, call for help immediately and ensure that the victim is being taken care of. Also, ask someone to document the incident. Take videos, get statements from witnesses, and don’t forget to list down their names and contact numbers. You should also contact your attorney as soon as possible, so he or she can advise you on what to do next.

Operate As An LLC Or A Corporation

A business that is running as a private enterprise can consider forming an LLC (Limited Liability Corporation) or a corporation to protect its owner(s) from personal liability and reduce the risk of exposure to lawsuits and bankruptcy.

Consumers find it easier to press charges against sole proprietorships and partnerships because they can sue the owner(s) directly. If the customer wins the case, the owner(s) is held accountable.

On the other hand, suing an LLC or a corporation is more complex, and consumers usually have very little hope of winning the case. Even if they do, the owners’ personal assets won’t be on the line.

Nonetheless, it’s important for a business to operate as a correct business entity so as not to jeopardize their liability insurance coverage. Work with your legal team to make sure that your business is properly covered and classified, that’s why we recommend Mulvihill Law Firm to get the best legal counseling.

Hire A Reliable Business Attorney

Regardless of the size of your company, you should have a Mesa business lawyer on retainer, so you can access their services whenever the need arises. When disputes arise, your attorney can intervene and serve as mediator to prevent things from getting to court.

However, if your business is already being sued for personal injury, the very first thing you should do is review the suit papers with your lawyer. If you don’t have one, find an experienced attorney that specializes in the type of lawsuit you were served – in this case, a personal injury attorney.

When navigating a personal injury lawsuit, it is important that you cooperate and work closely with your attorney, especially in gathering and preserving records that have anything to do with the case.

Once the lawsuit has been filed, you should not meet or communicate with the plaintiff at all. Remember that anything you say or do can be used against you. Any communication must be done through the company’s attorney.

About The Author

Andrea Williams is the Community Manager at The Law Offices of Alcock & Associates P.C., a premier law group in Arizona that provides legal services to clients involved in Personal Injury, DUI, Immigration, and Criminal cases. She enjoys cooking, reading books, and playing minigolf with her friends and family in her spare time.