Porch Collapse

Here's a question that came into our inbox regarding the liability faced by having a porch at your apartment/condo....

Hi Dan:

I was listening to the radio as I was driving home last night and there was a story about a Chicago apartment's porch falling and injuring 10 people. Who would be liable in this case? Would it be the landlord since it's their property or could the renter be held liable as well? I have a porch and entertain quite often so I want to make sure I'm insured properly.

Thanks!

The answer is everyone could be liable.  The building owner will certainly be included in any lawsuit that is brought after the incident. They could be accused of faulty maintenance or some sort of negligence that the porch wasn't maintained properly.  The renter will also be included in a lawsuit for any number or reasons.

What happens on your property, or at your apartment (even if it's on a deck or porch sticking off of your apartment can be your responsibility.  You need to make sure you have enough liability coverage.  The minimum anyone should have today is $500,000. 

Let's take the porch collapse you heard about on the radio. There were 10 people injured.  How far do you suppose $100,000 will go?  How about $300,000?  The truth is in a situation like this the medical bills and settlements could go into the millions of dollars.  That's when we start talking about getting an umbrella.

Is it likely that something like this will happen to you? Probably not, but it does happen and my guess is, the renter in this instance didn't think he'd be asking these questions today either.