Florida Injury Lawyer Blog
Garage doors are an important safety feature of many homes, allowing cars to be stored safely. Many homeowners in Monroe County with attached garages also use their garage doors as primary entrances to their homes. In condos and apartment buildings, garage doors allow entrance to the building and allow residents to safely enter and exit a property.
Unfortunately, in some cases, garage doors can pose a hazard. If they are poorly designed or maintained, they can collapse on someone and cause serious injury. In cases where negligence leads to an injury, you may have a premises liability claim in Monroe County or a personal injury claim.
Types of Garage Door Injuries
Many things can go wrong with a garage door:
- Closing on a person: Modern garage doors are supposed to have sensors that cause the garage door to automatically raise back up if there is someone or something on the tracks of the door. When this sensor fails, the garage door can close on a child or person standing in the way, and doors are heavy enough to inflict potentially fatal injuries.
- Closing on a car: Residential garage doors can weigh four hundred pounds. If the sensor fails and a garage door closes on a car, it can cause serious damage to the car and potentially life-threatening injury to anyone inside.
- Falling garage doors: If a garage door fails, it can sag, get stuck open or closed, or can injure someone with crushing injuries. In some cases, a failing door can pose a security risk by allowing easy access to your home.
- Injuries from poor design: Manufacturers are responsible for designing garage doors that comply with current safety standards. Garage doors should be safe, should have safety features, and should be tested for safety. Poor design can make these products unstable and unsafe.
- Contractor-related issues: While some garage doors cause injury due to poor design, some injuries are caused by incorrect installation, repairs, or maintenance. Service contractors and technicians have an obligation to get adequate training and to know how to repair and install garage doors correctly.
Preventing Garage Door Injuries in Monroe County
Your garage doors are important for your entire home’s safety. You may wish to reduce your risk of injury by having quality garage doors installed and maintained by a respected, trained, and insured professional dealer.
If your garage door starts sagging, making an unusual noise, or not closing or opening correctly, contact a qualified technician for help. Do not attempt to fix your garage door yourself. Your garage door is under an immense amount of tension and it’s very heavy. If it falls on anyone or anything, serious damage and injury can result.
Never allow your children to play with or near the garage door. While modern doors have safety features, using your garage door incorrectly can result in failure of these systems and injury.
Have You Been Injured?
If you have suffered crushing injuries, amputation, car damage, or other damages from a garage door, it may not be immediately apparent who the liable parties are. If you suspect someone’s negligence may have led to your injuries, contact Flaxman Law Group at 1-866-352-9626 (1-866-FLAXMAN) for a free accident consultation with a Monroe County personal injury claims attorney.