Elevator escalator accidents can result in long-term injuries. There are hundreds of thousands of elevators across the U.S. However the number of escalators is less. In addition, the CPSC says there are about 20,000 elevator escalator accidents per year in the U.S.
In looking at elevator escalator accidents the first issue is who to sue. The first person is going to be the owner of the building where the device is. Also, the service company that maintains the device may have to be sued. Finally, the maker of the device may also have to be joined. It is fairly common that all three of these may point the finger at the other. The owner of the premises may have a duty to people on the premises that cannot be delegated. That is, even though they hire a property manager or service company to maintain the device, the owner is still liable.
Personal Injury Elevator Escalator Accidents
In suing the service company you need to find out quickly if there is an indemnity agreement between that outfit and the building owner. Such may exist within the contract between these two.
What Is The Standard
Another issue that exists in these types of cases is whether the common law standard of a common carrier applies to these devices. If an elevator or an escalator is deemed to be a common carrier, then the standard of care is higher than if the devices are not a common carrier. That is considerable to the benefit of the plaintiff. There is case law in Virginia that the operator of a passenger elevator in a hotel is a common carrier. A common carrier owes the highest degree of care to the people in the elevator. The same should apply to an escalator.
Nonfeasance v. Misfeasance
See the blogpost on this site dealing with Personal Injury Premises Liability. Within that blogpost, there is reference to the fact that Virginia does make a distinction between nonfeasance and misfeasance in regards to premises liability cases. As such an elevator maintenance company may have a duty not to engage in misfeasance. If all you have however is nonfeasance, there may or may not be any tort liability. Manning v. Drury Hotels Co., LLC, 2024 U.S. Dist. Lexis 72182.
Res Ipsa Loquitur
The doctrine of res ipsa loquitur may also apply. That doctrine says that with certain types of injury, the defendant may be presumed to be at fault. If that doctrine applies in your case then you have a huge advantage
All Records
In pursuing these types of claims you need to obtain all of the records relating to the device for at least three years before the accident. This includes all records of any accidents, all maintenance records, and all records of any “callbacks”. Some states perform governmental inspections of these devices. If that is so then you need to obtain those records through a FOIA request.
Inspection
The actual inspection of the elevator or escalator must be done. This needs to be done with your expert witness. An elevator is simply a car that travels up and down in a shaft. The shaft is called a hoistway. At the bottom of the hoistway, there is a pit. You need to inspect the pit, the hoistway, and the car itself.
These claims are never simple but if thoroughly vetted they can result in a good outcome for the client.
Get a Personal Injury Elevator Escalator Accidents Liability Attorney in the DMV Area
Call or contact us for a free consult. Brien Roche stands ready to assist with your elevator or escalator-specific premises liability claim. Mr. Roche has helped many in the Virginia, Maryland, and D.C. area win claims regarding premises liability.
See elevators for a review of Virginia case law on elevator-escalator accidents
For more information about elevators see the pages on Wikipedia.
