Many New York residents rent their living spaces instead of buying them. When you sign a lease, you agree to the terms that your landlord has set. Your landlord, however, is responsible for adhering to New York laws regarding building maintenance and safety. When a landlord allows an inhabited building to fall into disrepair, he or she can be held accountable by both the city and the tenants.
After several run-ins with the law over a hazardous apartment building, one Bronx landlord was arrested yesterday. According to the commissioner of the Department of Housing Preservation and Development Commissioner, the landlord failed to fix 30 violations the city found with the four-unit apartment building he owns.
Because of the landlord’s persistant negligence, the city took matters into its own hands by fixing the building’s roof, electrical system and exterior. While it is fortunate for tenants that the city stepped in, it is likely that they had been forced to live in dangerous conditions for quite some time. In many situations like this, a premises liability lawsuit is warranted.
When a tenant is injured or becomes ill because a landlord refuses to maintain safe premises, the tenant can sue the landlord for personal injury and premises liability. No one should have to live in unsafe conditions, and when it causes injury, a victim should not be forced to pay for expensive medical bills. A premises liability lawsuit can help a victim obtain compensation from a negligent property owner that can go toward medical bills and other related expenses.
Source: New York Daily News, “City issues ‘stark wake-up call’ in ordering landlord to jail,” Denis Slattery, July 9, 2013
