Indiana Premises Liability Lawyer

How does Indiana decide what a property owner owed you?

Indiana still uses three categories of visitors. Your category depends on why you were on the property, and it determines the owner's duty.

• Invitees receive the most protection. They include business customers and, in Indiana, invited social guests. Owners must use reasonable care to protect them, including inspecting for hazards.
• Licensees are on the property with permission for their own purposes. Owners generally must warn them about hidden dangers they know about.
• Trespassers receive the least protection. Owners generally must only avoid willfully or wantonly injuring them.

Because Indiana treats invited social guests as invitees, a guest hurt at a friend's home may receive more protection than in some states. Our general premises liability guide explains these categories. Children may receive extra protection when an attractive hazard, such as a pool or construction equipment, draws them onto a property.

What hazards cause most Indiana premises injuries?

Wet floors, ice, poor lighting and broken stairs cause many Indiana premises claims. Winter weather adds slick parking lots and entrances across the state.

Common examples include:

1. Spills and leaks in grocery stores and big-box retailers.
2. Ice from poor drainage or careless snow removal in parking lots.
3. Broken stairs, loose railings and torn carpet in apartments.
4. Falling merchandise from high shelves in warehouse-style stores.
5. Uneven sidewalks and parking lot potholes.

The key question is usually whether the owner knew or should have known about the hazard and had time to fix it or warn about it. Inspection logs, cleaning records, video and prior complaints help answer that.

Snow and ice deserve special mention. A business that knows customers will cross its parking lot after a storm should take reasonable steps, such as plowing, salting and marking slick areas, within a reasonable time.

What about Indiana casinos, stadiums and convention centers?

These businesses owe their guests reasonable care, just like any other owner. Indiana has casinos along Lake Michigan and the Ohio River and racinos in central Indiana, and Indianapolis hosts major sporting events and conventions.

Large crowds bring specific risks: spilled drinks on stairs, crowded concourses, broken escalators and dark parking garages. These businesses usually have security cameras and incident reporting systems, so ask for a report right away and request that video be saved. Hotels and water parks near the Indiana Dunes and the Lake Michigan shore owe the same duty for pools, decks and walkways.

How does fault sharing affect a fall claim?

Against a private owner, your recovery is reduced by your share of fault, and you recover nothing if you are more than 50% at fault. Owners often argue that the visitor should have seen the hazard.

Consider a shopper who slips on a leaking cooler's puddle in an Evansville store and suffers a hip fracture with $120,000 in losses. The store argues the shopper was not watching the floor. If a jury finds the shopper 25% at fault, the recovery is $90,000. At 50%, it is $60,000. At 51%, there is no recovery.

Store video showing how long the puddle was there often decides the case.

Can you bring a claim for a fall on public property?

Yes, but the rules are stricter. A tort claim notice is generally due within 180 days for a city, county, town or school, and 270 days for the state.

Government defendants also are not covered by Indiana's comparative fault law, so they can argue that any fault on your part bars recovery. Some public entities have immunities, such as for certain weather conditions. Indiana also protects many landowners who open land to the public for free recreation. Our page on government and public property injury claims explains these rules.

When is an owner responsible for a crime on the property?

When the crime was foreseeable and the owner failed to take reasonable steps to prevent it. Apartment complexes, hotels, bars, parking garages and gas stations are common settings.

Indiana courts look at whether the specific harm was foreseeable given the circumstances. Prior crimes on the property, broken locks, poor lighting and missing security staff are important evidence. An owner cannot be expected to prevent every crime, but working locks, adequate lighting and a real response to repeated complaints are reasonable steps.

If a fall or assault led to a death, our Indiana wrongful death page explains the family's options. For deadlines and other claim types, see our main Indiana page. Our team offers a free case review, and there is no fee unless we win.