If a Worker Is Injured on Your Property

Homeowners are liable for injuries and accidents that happen on their property. When a worker suffers an injury on your property, your liability can depend on their status and your insurance coverage. Under premises liability laws, homeowners owe visitors a duty of care. If you hire an employee to work in your home, you may need workers’ compensation insurance.

Failing to get the right insurance coverage and take reasonable safety measures can expose you to costly liability claims. Talk to an insurance attorney to make sure you have the coverage you need to prevent an unexpected personal injury or premises liability claim.

What Are a Homeowner’s Duties to Workers?

According to Matthew L. Schrader, an insurance liability attorney at Reminger in Columbus, most homeowners don’t put much thought into having a household employee until it’s too late. “It’s not a problem until there’s a problem, and when there’s a problem, it’s not a small one,” he says.

Under premises liability laws, homeowners owe a duty of care to others on their property. The duty of care varies by state and the type of visitor. Some states use a reasonable care standard for all visitors. Homeowners must use reasonable care to maintain their property in a reasonably safe condition. Other states categorize visitors as invitees, licensees, or trespassers. In these states, homeowners have a different duty of care depending on the type of visitor.

Licensees are visitors you invite to your house, like a guest coming to a holiday party. An invitee is someone who comes onto your property for a business purpose. Invitees include most workers on your property, including delivery persons, contractors, or housekeepers. Homeowners owe invitees a duty of reasonable care to warn of known dangers and take reasonable steps to fix any unsafe conditions.

Before inviting a worker onto your property, you have to make sure your home is in reasonably safe condition and free from any hidden dangers. If you know of any dangerous conditions that are not open and obvious, you must warn the worker or take measures to fix the hazardous conditions.

For example, you call a plumber to fix a leak in your basement. You have a loose step on the stairs down to the basement that could cause an accident. You must tell the plumber about the broken step or fix the step before the plumber arrives. If the plumber falls because you don’t warn them about the stairs, you may be liable for the plumber’s injuries.

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Household Employees vs. Independent Contractors

Your duties to workers can depend on whether they involve a household employee or an independent contractor. Household employees differ from independent contractors because the homeowner who hires the worker determines the matter and means of employment. When a household employee is working on the homeowner’s property, the homeowner is also determining how that employee will work. For example, when hiring a nanny, you assign tasks, a schedule, compensation, and the means to do the job.

When hiring an independent contractor, determine the matter and means of the work. A painter will bring their own brushes, paints, and ladders. Independent workers complete the work without equipment or instruction from the homeowner. At the end of the job, the homeowner will receive a bill. In the event that the nanny or injured worker gets hurt in the course and scope of their employment, the employee’s relationship with the property owner can unravel into serious legal ramifications.

“You could be running afoul of the law for not having secured workers’ compensation coverage for them,” says Belinda S. Barnes, an attorney at Gallagher, Gams, Tallan, Barnes & Littrel in Columbus. “What may be even worse is if they are seriously injured and there’s a potential liability claim against you. You may have an uninsured interest because there may be an exclusion for employees in your homeowner’s policy.”

Schrader had a case involving a similar incident. The client had a household employee and didn’t think about getting workers’ compensation insurance coverage. “The client ended up getting busted for workers’ compensation, for not paying workers’ compensation premiums, and then became personally liable for this person’s workers’ compensation claim. It really turned into a horrible nightmare,” he says.

Cover Yourself and Your Workers

Once you have workers’ comp liability coverage for any household employees, take a look at your homeowner’s insurance policy. Call your insurance company and make sure that if this person is not considered an employee, you have adequate homeowners insurance coverage for any type of accident or injury.

There are also protections to consider when hiring an independent contractor. “Whenever I have somebody doing something at my house, I want to see their information showing that they are bonded, licensed, and insured, and they carry workers’ compensation coverage,” Barnes says. “Let’s say they fall off your roof doing some work, and they don’t have workers’ compensation coverage, they could potentially make a claim against you.”

Both attorneys agree it’s not likely an independent contractor would recover on a claim against a homeowner. However, defending against a contractor injury claim is pricey. It’s always better to play it safe and ensure the general contractor has liability insurance.

Liability and Workers’ Comp

To protect against a personal injury claim, inform subcontractors or a handyman about any hazards on your property. If you have a rotted porch, broken railings, or exposed nails, let them know.

If a worker has an accident on your property and files a workers’ compensation claim, they do not have to prove negligence. For workers’ compensation, the injured party shows that the injury occurred in the course and scope of their employment.

“Let’s say you hired someone to come over to your house to paint, and he shows up with a T-shirt, shorts, and shoes and has nothing with him. You give him the paintbrushes, the rollers, the paint trays, the brushes, the ladders, the tape, and all the supplies. That type of scenario might turn what would ordinarily be an independent contractor into an employee,” Schrader says.

Workers can also file a premises liability case for injuries caused by failing to warn them about dangerous conditions on your property. You have a legal responsibility to make sure your property is reasonably safe for visitors. Before starting a construction project on your property, make sure to identify and fix any hazards.

Find Legal Help After a Fall Accident on Your Property

A premises liability claim or personal injury lawsuit can be costly. If the injured person recovers compensation, they can claim lost wages, medical expenses, and pain and suffering damages. Contact a law firm and seek legal advice from a reputable insurance liability attorney. An attorney can give you a case evaluation and explain your legal options.