New York City’s elevators make about 35 million passenger trips each day, according to the city’s Department of Buildings (DOB), which oversees elevator inspections citywide. In all, New York City has about 84,000 elevators that are under the jurisdiction of the DOB. Of those, 63,000 are passenger elevators — a number that is greater than the number of elevators in Los Angeles, Chicago, Washington D.C. and Miami combined.
While elevators serve an important purpose, they can also be deadly if they are not properly maintained or if they are defective. Most elevator accidents are preventable with proper maintenance and inspections. Here are four dangers or hazards that can result in an elevator accident.
1. Door Strikes
One of the most common elevator injuries is a passenger being struck by a closing elevator door. Known as “door strike injuries,” they typically occur when someone is entering or exiting the elevator. The doors of the elevator are required to close at a rate that would make an injury unlikely.
However, elevator inspectors or maintenance staff may miss or overlook issues relating to elevator door operation, leading to an injury accident. Scheduling inspections of a building’s elevators is the best way to prevent these types of accidents. Defective or malfunctioning parts should be replaced during inspection and service, or whenever their replacement is required.
2. Leveling
Leveling or misleveling is another common danger and a trip-and-fall hazard. Elevators can mislevel just from regular use, causing a gap that poses a serious tripping hazard. If the elevator is in violation of code, landlords (building owners) or property managers have a responsibility to get the elevator fixed so such dangers can be averted.
3. Entrapment
Another safety concern with elevators is getting trapped in one. This is also known as entrapment. All buildings are required to have an emergency evacuation procedure so people can be safely evacuated from a stopped elevator, even if it stops between floors. When facility/property managers are not properly trained or do not know the correct procedure for evacuating trapped passengers in an elevator, the mistakes that occur can be devastating.
4. Elevator Shaft Falls
There is a danger of elevator shaft falls not only for elevator passengers, but also for elevator mechanics, construction workers and others who work in or near elevators. Most elevator shaft falls may have been easily prevented had the shaft been properly barricaded or covered. Lack of posted safety warnings is one of the most common causes of falls into elevator shafts. Unprotected openings are a major hazard that lead to elevator shaft falls. The installation of guardrails or safety nets can prevent such falls and save lives.
Responsibility of Property Owners/Managers
Property owners and/or property managers must ensure that the elevators and escalators in their buildings are well maintained and safe to operate. They can be held accountable for injuries and losses caused by an elevator accident, particularly if they failed to have the elevator maintained or didn’t make timely repairs. Some of the other parties who can be held responsible include elevator maintenance companies — for instance, when they fail to perform the repair and maintenance work correctly, and/or elevator manufacturers — for any component or equipment failure or due to defective design/manufacturing, etc.
Injured victims can file a premises liability lawsuit against at-fault property owners and/or managing agents, elevator maintenance companies, etc. and seek compensation for damages including, but not limited to, medical expenses, lost wages and benefits, hospitalization, permanent injuries, disabilities, past and future pain and suffering, etc. Those who have lost loved ones in elevator accidents may be able to file wrongful death lawsuits against the negligent (careless) parties seeking compensation for their losses as well.
Contacting an Experienced Lawyer
If you or a loved one has been injured in an elevator/escalator accident or suffered injuries as a result of negligence (carelessness) on the part of property owners and/or property managers, elevator maintenance companies, etc., the experienced New York personal injury attorneys at the Law Offices of Kenneth A. Wilhelm can help you better understand your legal rights and options, and also fight hard to recover just compensation for you.
Our law firm recovered $3,000,000 for a man who fell and suffered two broken legs when he walked into an open elevator shaft. In an interview by the Canadian television station Global News after a fatal escalator accident in Montreal, Mr. Kenneth A. Wilhelm stated that the installation of emergency stop buttons that are easily located and run the entire length of the escalator stairs may go a long way in preventing escalator accident injuries and fatalities. Our law firm helped a client secure $1,750,000 in a case where she suffered an ankle injury requiring surgery when the elevator she was in fell four floors due to negligence (carelessness) on the part of the elevator maintenance company. In addition, we got the workers’ compensation insurance company to pay a $150,000 lump sum. Also, one of our clients obtained a verdict for $43,940,000 and another of our clients got a verdict for $23,500,000, both in medical malpractice cases.
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