Chicago Elevator Accident Lawyer

Americans take an estimated 120 billion trips on elevators and escalators every year. With 600,000 elevators nationwide, many people may use these time-savers several times a day. While they are convenient, if the equipment is not maintained or operated safely, these metal cars can cause severe accidents.

An estimated 10,000 elevator accident injuries in the U.S. occur each year that involve severe injuries and dozens of deaths. Most elevator accidents occur in commercial buildings.

Did you or your loved one suffer an elevator or escalator accident? If so, the personal injury attorneys at Rosenfeld Injury Lawyers, LLC represent victims injured in an elevator or escalator accident.

Contact our Chicago premises liability lawyers today for a free case evaluation at (888) 424-5757 to discuss your legal options on holding the elevator maintenance company and manufacturer financially accountable for your damages.

Types of Elevator Injuries

Most injuries and fatal accidents in elevators involve getting in and out of the metal container. Many of these accidents cause serious injuries that require medical attention:

Slips, trips, and falls: People easily trip or fall when entering or leaving an elevator. If the car does not stop correctly, it may not be aligned with the floor outside of the elevator, leaving a dangerous ledge that people can trip over.
Door closing: Automatic doors can shut on a person while exiting or entering the container, crushing a limb or appendage. Most have safety features meant to prevent the doors from closing on an object or person, but if the doors do not function properly, a person might be injured in an elevator.
Rapid car drops: A sudden drop in an elevator is the equivalent of a car crash that can throw passengers around.

Elevator accidents could result in a premises liability case. The Chicago property owner is held legally accountable for any harm, elevator injury, pain, and suffering experienced by victims because of poor maintenance.

Elderly and Children Injured in Chicago, Illinois Elevator Accidents

Elderly persons are often the most vulnerable to elevator accidents. About 2,600 elderly visit the emergency room each year due to elevator-related injuries such as head trauma.

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reveals that elevator and escalator incidents are infrequent and claim the lives of thirty victims on average every year. About 50% of elevator fatalities involve workers installing or maintaining the equipment.

The elevator accident survivors suffer:

Serious Injuries from trips or falls
Fractured hips
Soft-tissue injuries
Crushing injuries

Young children and teenagers are very susceptible to elevator injuries. However, most severely injured victims are eighty-five years of age or older. Only a small number of elevator and escalator accidents requiring a trip to the emergency room affect young people.

According to Consumer Watch.com, the elevator injury rate in children harmed on trips on elevators every year throughout the United States is 2.6 per 100,000. Children up to four years of age were most likely to suffer significant injuries.

If an elevator shaft unexpectedly opens while you are in the elevator, or if you become trapped in an elevator that starts to drop, you could be seriously injured.

Prosecuting an Elevator or Escalator Accident Case

The heavy traffic in elevator cars carrying millions of passengers accounts for about 17,000 injuries and thirty deaths every year. Rosenfeld Injury Lawyers, LLC represents elevator accident victims injured by property owners’ negligent actions that failed to provide sufficient maintenance.

Our Chicago elevator accident attorneys work to get you the financial compensation you deserve when a poorly maintained or defectively designed elevator results in an injury to you or the wrongful death of a loved one.

Our law office has successfully prosecuted elevator and escalator incidents against property owners, maintenance companies, installers, and manufacturers.

Let a liability attorney from our law offices hold the building owner financially accountable. We offer free case reviews for all Chicago elevator accident cases. Call for your free consultation.

Freight Elevator Accidents In Warehouses & Factories

Many businesses and warehouses regularly utilize freight elevators to move merchandise and overstock items and most are manually operated. Their design could pose a substantial risk of injury to both operators and people in the area.

Moreover, freight elevator doors may not shut entirely and only a few utilize door locks. The industrial design of these units could expose people to falls down the elevator shaft.

Elevator Safety Precautions

There are strict laws that regulate elevator safety and maintenance. In Illinois, the State of Illinois Fire Marshall – Division of Elevator Safety oversees the construction, maintenance, and use of elevator cars statewide. The Elevator Safety and Regulation Act regulates the industry, and all those who install, construct, repair, maintain, or own escalators.

Any individual injured due to improper maintenance such as faulty wiring or non-functioning safety features has grounds for a personal injury case. Depending on the circumstance, the building owner, the elevator manufacturer, maintenance company, or installer may be liable for injuries caused by an elevator accident.

Elevator injury cases can be complicated and often require investigations, inspections, and other research to build a strong elevator accident case. Rosenfeld Injury Lawyers, LLC is a comprehensive team of the top Chicago elevator accident attorneys experienced at handling complex elevator accident claims. We fight to get our clients the financial compensation they deserve for their elevator injuries or the loss of a loved one.

Chicago Elevator Accident Lawyers Fighting to Safeguard the Legal Rights of Victims Injured in Elevator Accidents

Let a Chicago elevator accident lawyer from our law office protect your legal rights to ensure you are compensated for your medical expenses, hospitalization costs, and lost wages. Your premises liability or a product liability claim will hold anyone with a duty of care to keep you safe legally accountable for their negligence.

The responsible party might be property owners, property management companies, elevator installers, defective product manufacturers, commercial or residential property owners, or other elevator and escalator users.

Additionally, our personal injury lawyers will assist you in filing appropriate Workers' Compensation documents and speak directly to the insurance company involved in the elevator accident to ensure you receive maximum financial compensation as allowed under Illinois law.

If you are the family member of a deceased accident victim of an escalator incident, you also have the right to seek compensation through a personal injury wrongful death lawsuit.

Chicago Elevator Accident Law Firm

Elevator Accident Injuries FAQs

Our law firm understands that many families have questions about filing and resolving elevator accident cases. A Chicago elevator accident lawyer has answered some of those questions below.

Contact us today at (888) 424-5757 to schedule a free consultation with a Chicago, IL elevator accident attorney who can answer all of your questions.

How Common Are Elevator Accidents?

According to the CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention), escalators and elevators kill about thirty individuals every year nationwide. Elevator accidents account for nine out of every ten escalator/elevator death.

Another 17,000 people are severely injured in an elevator or escalator annually. Some of the deaths and elevator injuries involve workers and maintenance specialists harmed or killed on elevator platforms or when caught between or in moving parts.

Many accidents result from property owners failing to provide a duty of care for all escalator and elevator riders. The property owner or building owner could be held legally liable for all injuries providing fair compensation for hospitalization costs, medical bills, lost wages, pain, and suffering.

What Causes Elevator Mis-Leveling?

More individuals are harmed or killed yearly in elevator mis-leveling when the elevator doors open, and the surface is not level with the landing area. The mis-leveling could cause serious trip hazards as passengers enter and exit the elevator.

Common causes of elevator mis-leveling include aging equipment, accumulated wear & tear, a lack of elevator maintenance, high-intensity usage, defective equipment, and environmental conditions.

Has Anyone Ever Died from a Falling Elevator?

Out of the nearly thirty deaths that occur every year in elevator accidents in America, most deaths were associated with maintenance employees that were repairing or installing the elevator inside the elevator shafts.

Only a few victims have ever died falling down elevator shafts. Others were killed by electrocution, doors opening while moving, and drowning when the elevator drops below the water-field street level.

How Do You Die in an Elevator Crash?

Elevator passengers have nearly no chance of ever dying in a free-falling elevator crash because of the many safety features installed on modern-day elevator cars. Elevating equipment constructed a century ago was designed differently than today's elevator systems that work on counterbalance ballast.

The safety features do not ensure passengers will travel unscathed. The CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) estimates that dozens of people die every year in elevator accidents. However, most of these accidents involve fires, electrical shock, electrocution, and slip/trip and fall accidents.

What to Do If You Are Trapped in an Elevator?

The first step in staying safe in a trapped elevator is to remain calm. Keeping your wits about you will help prevent making poor choices that could jeopardize your safety during your entrapment.

Other things to do include:

Look inside the elevator car for a light source that will likely be on the button panel
If possible, push the button marked “opened” to see if the doors trip open allowing you to egress from the car
Push the call button to see if you get a response from the building security
Next press the red-colored alarm button that will likely create a loud buzzing sound inside and outside the elevator car
Finally, yell loudly for help and wait for assistance

Are Stairs More Dangerous Than Elevators?

According to the CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention), taking the stairs is far more dangerous than riding in elevators. Consumer Watch estimates that over eighteen million passengers travel in elevators annually in the U.S.

Hiring Chicago Elevator Accident Injury Lawyers to Resolve Your Elevator Injury Case

Meet with a Chicago, Illinois elevator accident lawyer as soon as possible after an elevator accident to discuss an elevator injury lawsuit. Let an elevator accident lawyer from our law firm recover your medical bills, hospitalization expenses, and obtain money from your time away from the job.

Call a Chicago elevator accident lawyer today at (888) 424-5757 (toll-free phone call) or through the contact form to schedule a free consultation to pursue financial compensation. All discussions with our Chicago premises liability attorneys remain confidential through an attorney-client relationship.

Our Chicago accident lawyers provide legal representation in numerous practice areas, including car accident injuries, medical malpractice, premises liability, construction accident injuries, nursing home abuse, slip & fall accident injuries, and wrongful death cases.

Our Chicago personal injury lawyers have handled premises liability cases in the Chicago area where the victims suffered a serious injury at office buildings, shopping malls, supermarkets, grocery stores, and parks.

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Jonathan Rosenfeld was professionally objective, timely, and knowledgeable. Also, his advice was extremely effective regarding my case. In addition, Jonathan was understanding and patient pertaining to any of my questions or concerns. I was very happy with the end result and I highly recommend Jonathan Rosenfeld. Michonne Proulx

Extremely impressed with this law firm. They took control of a bad motorcycle crash that left my uncle seriously injured. Without any guarantee of a financial recovery, they went out and hired accident investigators and engineers to help prove how the accident happened. I am grateful that they worked on a contingency fee basis as there was no way we could have paid for these services on our own. Ethan Armstrong

This lawyer really helped me get compensation for my motorcycle accident case. I know there is no way that I could have gotten anywhere near the amount that Mr. Rosenfeld was able to get to settle my case. Thank you. Daniel Kaim

Jonathan helped my family heal and get compensation after our child was suffered a life threatening injury at daycare. He was sympathetic and in constant contact with us letting us know all he knew every step of the way. We were so blessed to find Jonathan! Giulia

Jonathan did a great job helping my family navigate through a lengthy lawsuit involving my grandmother's death in a nursing home. Through every step of the case, Jonathan kept my family informed of the progression of the case. Although our case eventually settled at a mediation, I really was impressed at how well prepared Jonathan was to take the case to trial. Lisa

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