Violent criminal attacks are on the rise and the effects have an impact on us all. Business owners have an obligation to ensure their property is safe for the public to visit. This includes having proper security measures such as providing substantial lightning, better or additional locks, hiring a security guard, having working security cameras that are being constantly monitored, alarms, controlled parking lot access, and/or erecting gates or fences. But what is enough security? That depends on the location of the property, what it’s being used for, and the amount of known crime in the neighborhood. An owner of a commercial property such as an apartment complex, hotel, motel, retail store, bar, restaurant, movie theatre, or shopping mall is responsible for making sure that visitors are protected from the threat of violence. If a business owner fails to provide adequate security and an individual is injured, robbed, shot, assaulted, or killed, the property owner can be held liable for the Injuries and damages that result from the business owner’s failure to utilize adequate security measures. To be successful in bringing a Negligent Security case, evidence of the following must be proven:

1. You were legally on the property at the time of the incident
2. The crime was reasonably foreseeable and the owner was negligent in preventing it
3. The damages you suffered were caused by the inadequate security of the property owner. Losses can include medical bills, lost wages, property damage, and pain and suffering

Commercial property owners aren’t always liable for assaults or injuries that occur on their property. To prevail on a negligent security case, you must be able to show that the crime was foreseeable to the property owner and that no security measures were utilized to prevent the foreseeable crime from occurring. Proving that the crime was foreseeable is crucial to the success of a negligent security claim. It is important to seek a skilled negligent security attorney to properly investigate, track down, and locate witnesses, collect valuable evidence, and obtain the crime grid for the surrounding areas to prove there has been a pattern of assaults or injuries on the property or if similar crimes have occurred in the past.

Negligent security claims in Georgia can be challenging but often result in successful compensation for those who have suffered harm due to a lack of responsible safety measures within a business’s property.