When you take a trip to a local mall, it is likely that you will take your children with you, too. You will have much less control of hazards and dangers in comparison to when you are in the safety of your own home. When you are at home, you are able to make sure that all dangers are out of reach of your children. To some extent, you can make their entire environment safe.
When you visit any type of business, however, whether it is a restaurant, supermarket, movie theater or shopping mall, it is the owner and/or manager of the premises that has the responsibility to make the environment reasonably safe. In doing so, they must think of the various hazards and dangers that could present themselves to different people, including the disabled and young children.
If my child got injured at a shopping mall, can I hold the mall liable?
All shopping malls have a responsibility to make the environment safe for their patrons, which include young children. Of course, there is only so much the mall owners can do to prevent injuries from occurring. For instance, escalators and staircases, when fully functioning and well-lit, can still pose dangers to young children. To this end, parents have the ultimate responsibility to keep their young children away from ordinary hazards like these.
However, there are cases when children are injured because of the shopping mall’s failure to make the environment safe. Examples of a situation such as this could be if a child slips on a wet floor and hits his or her head as a result, or if a kid gets injured by something that could be considered an attractive nuisance.
What is an attractive nuisance?
Attractive nuisances are anything on the property that is unnecessary but has the potential to capture the interest of a young child, and potentially injuring them as a result. An example of this could be fountains in a shopping mall into which a child may fall.
If your child was injured in a shopping mall in Georgia and you believe that it was the fault of the property owner or their designated manager, it is important to take action to ensure that you get the compensation that you deserve.