Elevator or escalator accidents occur suddenly, but the resulting injuries can affect a person for months, years, or even a lifetime. These surprisingly common incidents cause serious harm, particularly in high-traffic locations managed by commercial entities like malls, hotels, office buildings, airports, hospitals, stores, parking garages, and apartment complexes. According to a shocking report from the Center for Construction Research and Training, elevator and escalator incidents result in approximately 31 fatalities and 17,000 serious injuries each year in the United States.
Joye Law Firm Injury Lawyers helps South Carolinians stand up to property owners, insurance companies, maintenance contractors, and other parties that fail to maintain their equipment and cause injuries. Since 1968, our firm has helped level the playing field for injured underdogs up against large corporations and their powerful insurance companies.
If you were injured in an elevator or escalator accident in a commercial setting like a store, hotel, office building, apartment complex, hospital, parking garage, or shopping center, you may have a personal injury claim. Contact Joye Law Firm Injury Lawyers for a free initial consultation to learn your options.
Premises Liability Cases Involving Elevator and Escalator Accidents
Elevators and escalators safely move countless people every day. Yet, when things go wrong and people get hurt, accidents on a commercial property’s elevators, escalators, moving stairs, elevator doors, elevator cars, landings, shafts, handrails, sensors, or mechanical systems fall under the umbrella of premises liability law. When these systems malfunction or are not properly maintained, injuries to customers, tenants, employees, and visitors can be severe.
These accidents may happen in:
- Shopping malls
- Office buildings
- Hotels and resorts
- Apartment complexes
- Parking garages
- Hospitals and medical offices
- Airports
- Retail stores
- Government buildings
- Entertainment venues
How Elevator Accidents Happen in Commercial Buildings
Passengers trust elevators to stop at the floor level, open safely, and move smoothly. Elevator accidents occur when malfunctions in the elevator car, doors, sensors, controls, or shaft area injure passengers instead of delivering them safely. Even a small defect can cause a serious fall or crush injury.
Common elevator accident causes include:
- Elevator car misleveling with the floor
- Doors are closing too quickly
- Doors failing to detect a passenger
- Sudden drops or abrupt stops
- Passengers getting stuck inside the elevator
- Exposed elevator shaft areas
- Poor lighting near the elevator entrance
- Missing warning signs
- Delayed repairs after prior complaints
- Mechanical malfunctions caused by poor maintenance
How Escalator Accidents Happen in Commercial Buildings
Escalator accidents involve moving stairs, handrails, comb plates, landing areas, steps, and other moving parts. Because escalators continue moving while people step on and off, a sudden failure can cause a person to fall, get caught, or be pulled into the equipment.
- Common escalator accident causes include:
- Slip and fall accidents
- Sudden stops
- Broken or uneven steps
- Handrails moving at the wrong speed
- Loose or damaged comb plates
- Shoe laces, clothing, or body parts getting caught
- Missing emergency stop access
- Poor maintenance
- Unsafe gaps near the step edge
- Lack of warning signs during known problems
- Crowding in high-traffic commercial areas
