Salt Lake City Negligent Security Lawyer
With Personal Injury Law Offices in Sandy, Utah
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Brad DeBry is not associated or affiliated with Robert J. DeBry & Associates, P.C.
Client Testimonials

Brad is fantastic! So pleased with all the help he has been giving me in such a stressful hard time with my accident. He definitely treats his clients like family and wants what is best for them. Would recommend him to anyone.
Ashley Richey

I contacted Brad a couple of times with some questions regarding our accident and what our rights were. He gave us valuable and helpful suggestions and was so friendly and knowledgeable.
Aimee Ballif

Went above and beyond to not only help me with my case but to reassure me as I was struggling with my anxiety. He was very kind and supportive and wasn't afraid to offer as much help as possible. One of the best you'll meet here and I highly recommend!
Linzie Builds
ABOUT BRAD DEBRY

7 Mistakes That Ruin Personal Injury Cases
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Being injured during the commission of a crime is a terrifying experience. When that crime could have been prevented had better security measures been taken by the person or entity who owns the property, you deserve to be compensated.
If you’re reading this, you may have been injured due to negligent security. You may still be experiencing pain, whether that is physical, psychological, or both. Your experience may have interfered with your ability to work, straining your finances. You’re probably searching for someone to help you with a negligent security claim.
We are here to help. Our firm offers free legal consultations. Call our Salt Lake City negligent security lawyer today.
Don’t put off calling because you’re worried about having money to pay upfront for answers. Call us as soon as you can and schedule your free legal consultation.
We’ve provided the information on this page to give you an idea of what a negligent security claim involves. We’re going to start by pointing out the many ways you can unknowingly damage your negligent security claim. Next, we’ll share a client story to help you get an even better idea of additional things you’ll want to know.
You’ll notice that throughout this page, we use the word “incident” instead of “accident.” Negligent security claims are prompted by injuries sustained through the commission of a crime that could have been prevented had the property owner provided adequate security. If you’ve been hurt in a negligent security incident, it’s no accident. Someone took advantage of a lack of security to commit a crime. And even if that person is caught and facing criminal charges, you have the right to pursue justice for your injuries in civil court through a negligent security claim.
Make sure you read to the end of this page to learn as much as you can, then give us a call. We’d love to help you get answers about your specific claim in a free legal consultation.
Common Negligent Security Claim Mistakes
It’s unfortunate that many people damage their negligent security claims without even being aware of it. Check out the mistakes below to help you protect the value of your claim.
Skipping the Visit to the Emergency Room
Making the mistake of not getting examined by a doctor after you’ve been injured will put your health and your claim at risk.
When you go through a scary experience, your body will most likely kick into “fight or flight” mode. You may have heard of it. It’s the ancient way the human body has to protect you should you need to flee a predator or fight off an attack, even when injured.
To achieve this, your bloodstream will be flooded with adrenaline and cortisol to give you a temporary boost of energy and strength. These hormones will also dampen your pain receptors, making it harder to gauge just how seriously you’ve been injured.
The fight or flight response can last for hours; sometimes, as many as 18. Don’t go by your own assessment of how badly you feel after an injury. Let a doctor decide.
When you don’t get examined by the doctor, you leave yourself vulnerable to any internal injuries of which you are unaware. Letting internal bleeding go unchecked, for example, can endanger your life.
Going to the doctor right after you get hurt also provides you with a record of your injuries, the date and time stamp of which coincide with the incident. This is an important piece of evidence to support your injury claim. Without it, the insurance company can challenge whether you actually sustained any injuries in the incident.
While getting a medical exam late is better than not going at all, it still leaves your claim vulnerable to devaluation. The insurance company can suggest:
- You couldn’t have been injured all that seriously, since you didn’t go to the doctor right away.
- The severity of your injuries is your doing, because if you’d gotten medical care immediately, your health wouldn’t be in such a detrimental situation and you would have recovered by now.
- Your injuries could be from an unrelated incident that happened after the incident.
The closer your exam date and time are to the incident, the stronger your proof is of who is responsible for your injuries. Protect your health and your claim by getting a medical exam right after a negligent security injury.
Disregarding the Doctor’s Treatment Plan
A mistake we see often is people ignoring or forgetting about the ways they need to assist in their own recovery once they leave the hospital or doctor’s office. This is your treatment plan.
A treatment plan can take many forms, from occupational therapy to stretches to medication. Whatever the doctor advises you do to help in your recovery, you need to do it.
Not following your treatment plan can slow or hamper your recovery. Even if it doesn’t, the insurance company can use your lack of diligence against you. If your progress hits a snag, they can blame you for not doing everything you can to help yourself.
Don’t let the insurance company pull this on you. Be conscientious about following your doctor’s treatment plan.
Don’t Allow the Insurance Company to Recorded Your Statement
Many people make the mistake of agreeing to have a statement recorded by an insurance provider after the incident. This is dangerous. Please keep in mind that in the early days of your recovery, you are most likely vulnerable physically, mentally, and emotionally. The insurance company knows this, and this is when they are most likely to call and ask for your statement.
You may think that if you fail to give them what they want, they will drop your claim or devalue it in some way. The opposite is actually true. The adjuster isn’t calling to get all the details of your accident to make sure they pay you what they should. What the insurance adjuster is looking for in that call is any information that can be used to lower the value of your claim.
Remember that no matter how empathetic the person calling is, they are well trained to get you talking. Whatever you tell an adjuster during such a call will be scrutinized. Did you mention that you always used to leave your car unlocked in parking garages so you could get in faster if you thought someone around you looked creepy?
If your negligent security claim involves being mugged by a criminal who hid in the back seat of your car, guess what information may pop up to suggest you could’ve been targeted because your car was left unlocked, not because there were burned out light bulbs in that corner of the garage and no security cameras, making it an ideal spot to commit a crime?
But you always lock your vehicle now. It was locked; you’re sure of it.
But are you really sure?
This is just one example of how information provided in passing to the insurance company could be used against your claim. Your best course of action is to refer calls from the insurance company to your Salt Lake City negligent security lawyer. Many people don’t realize they are allowed to do this. You are, and you should.
Not to Hiring a Lawyer as Soon as Possible
When you’ve experienced trauma and sustained serious injuries, picking out a lawyer may be the last thing on your mind. You may even be toying with the idea of “taking care of it” yourself somewhere down the road.
While it’s understandable that you may need to wait a bit before being up to filing an injury claim, you should make sure it’s on your list. Not near the bottom, or the middle, but near the top.
Your health should, of course, be your first priority. When you’ve been injured due to negligence, however, justice should be a close second. No matter how long the statute of limitations in Utah gives you to file your injury claim, you’ve got to remember that evidence is going to dwindle with time.
The scene of the crime will get cleared away and evidence will be bagged and boxed. Security cameras may even suddenly appear weeks after you were robbed in that spot specifically because it lacked of cameras. Your Salt Lake City negligent security lawyer will want photos of the absence of those cameras to prove you didn’t just “step out of range” of the defendant’s cameras; they didn’t exist the day of the crime.
It’s also important to know that when you’re relying solely evidence collected by someone other than your attorney, it can get lost over time. And witnesses could move. Not everyone keeps their phone number or email for years, either. Even if your lawyer does reach a witness, that person’s memories of what happened are never going to get sharper than they were right after the incident.
The more time your Salt Lake City negligent security lawyer has to gather evidence and interview witnesses, the stronger your evidence and your case will be. Build your strongest claim by reaching out to a qualified attorney as soon as possible.
Choosing the Wrong Negligent Security Lawyer
Trying to take on a negligent security claim alone is risky. Even if you happen to be a personal injury attorney, you can probably agree that you’re not your best right now. Facing down an insurance company with their own stable of lawyers on speed dial may not be the best plan you ever had.
If you’re not a personal injury attorney, trying to quickly absorb the experience and skill such an attorney already possesses to fight your claim is unlikely to bring the results you want. Statistically, people who hire personal injury lawyers are awarded many times more than those who handle their claims on their own.
In addition, if you forgo an attorney and negotiations fail to bring you a settlement, you’ll be without the legal leverage an attorney has to take your case to trial. What’s more, the fact that you are trying to handle your own claim tells the insurance company that all they need to do is stonewall you to “shut you down,” making it all the more likely you will get far less than you deserve, at best.
When you do hire a lawyer, make sure that person is a seasoned personal injury trial lawyer. Though most personal injury cases handled by attorneys are resolved via settlement, some need to go to trial to bring the victim justice. If this should happen with your case, you’ll need a lawyer who can win in the courtroom.
Get yourself the leverage you need at the negotiating table and in the courtroom by hiring an experienced personal injury trial lawyer.
Salt Lake City Negligent Security Client Story
The story we have shared below is intended to give you additional answers about what to expect during a negligent security claim. As you may expect, names and details have been changed to protect the privacy of our clients. The value of the information remains, however, and we encourage you to read to the end to learn as much as possible. When you’re through, please give us a call to schedule a free legal consultation.
On a rainy evening in Salt Lake City not so long ago, Andrea Cortez turned out the lights in the marketing department and headed for the stairs to the roof of the parking garage. She could’ve taken the elevator instead of walking up four flights, but with no one left on the floor and probably in the entire building, she’d always had a fear that the elevator might get stuck. She couldn’t handle the thought of being trapped in a metal box hanging several stories above the ground until morning.
Besides, as a Marketing Director, long hours weren’t unusual, and the stairs always ensured at least a minimum amount of exercise. It’s why she parked at the top.
It wasn’t unusual for Andrea to be the first one at her desk in the morning and the last one out at night. She didn’t believe in asking her team to do what she wasn’t willing to do. If they stayed late, Andrea was there with them until everyone left. She loved her team and was well-loved in return.
Andrea’s shoes click-clacked as she crossed the vast tiled atrium. As she walked, she mentally noted the trees she’d used her phone app to identify over the years. Weeping Ficus. Black olive. Phoenix palm. Adonidia palm.
It’s actually quite lovely here at night, she thought to herself. She didn’t cross paths with another soul as she traversed the large building; the security guards had been laid off at least six months before.
As she walked up to the roof, she pulled out her keys and constructed a very short shopping list in her head.
Coffee and cat food— the two things in life that were indispensable to her and her rescue cat muffin. She laughed thinking about how many people ask her why she named the cat “Muffin.” They always asked if somehow, he looked like a muffin.
“Nope,” she’d reply, “It’s because he loves muffins. Will steal them right off your plate. Who knew?”
Andrea reached the top of the building without breaking a sweat. She pushed through the heavy metal fire door to see her car alone in the lot 20 yards away. Wondering what the range was on her fob, she lifted her keys and hit the unlock button. The bleat of the alarm disengaging was the last thing she heard before she was punched in the face.
Andrea woke up in pain with a broken jaw and a concussion. She was shocked to find she was missing her car and her ring finger. Her fiancé Elian sat in a chair beside her. Two days of scruff on his chin and dark circles under his eyes that told her she’d been unconscious for more than a few hours.
Andrea stayed in the hospital for two more days to make sure her jaw was not showing any signs of infection after the operation that left it wired shut for six weeks to heal. She also underwent tests and observation to ensure that her concussion wasn’t a precursor to additional brain trauma.
Four days after being carjacked, Andrea was released with instructions on signs of infection to watch for in her jaw and the tiny stump of her ring finger. Her treatment plan involved plenty of rest, a liquid diet, antibiotics, and pain medication.
As Elian drove her home, Andrea protested that he’d missed the exit to her apartment. He told her she was going to stay with him so he could care for her.
“But, Eli, my cat. You can’t expect Muffin to be alone for six weeks,” Andrea said, unable to believe he hadn’t thought of her fur baby.
“Andi, Muffin’s already at the condo,” Elian said with a self-satisfied grin.
The next week was rough. Normally fiercely independent, Andrea was mortified to find she couldn’t stand being alone. Even with Muffin to protect her, she was consumed by anxiety and had to force herself not to follow Elian from room to room as he did the chores.
Andrea hated her newfound vulnerability. At least she could sit with him at the breakfast bar while he cooked without having to admit to herself that she’d have been sitting there if he were scrubbing out the oven. She was afraid to say it out loud, but Andrea was afraid she was becoming agoraphobic. She figured it was only a matter of time before she became too anxious to leave the house.
The nightmares were even worse than Andrea’s anxiety while awake. As soon as she drifted off to sleep, she found herself confronted with her attacker once more. Sometimes he’d be holding bolt cutters, like the kind he must have used to take her finger when her engagement ring wouldn’t come off.
She’d try to run but he’d grab her by the wrist and lift the cutters. She’d try to scream, but her jaw wouldn’t move…
When Andrea woke screaming through her teeth for the fifth consecutive night, she knew she needed to find help. She’d soaked the sheets in cold sweat, again. Elian calmed her and helped her to the shower to rinse and put on dry pajamas while he changed the bed.
The next morning, he told her about our firm and suggested they call.
“Maybe if you file a negligence claim, you’ll be able to find your power again,” he said, referring to her sense of self-empowerment. “And some counseling may help…”
Fiercely independent or not, Andrea needed to do something.
Elian called us the next day and made an appointment for a free legal consultation for that afternoon. He said Andrea’s three main concerns were what it would cost to hire us, what her claim might be worth, and how long it would take.
We met the couple that afternoon at our office. Elian asked the questions on Andrea’s behalf while she took notes.
How much does it cost to hire an attorney?
“Before we spend too much of your time, how much does it cost to retain your firm for a negligent security claim?” Elian asked.
Our attorney told the couple that since the firm works on a contingency fee model, there would be no upfront charge.
“We don’t’ get paid until we successfully resolve your claim,” the lawyer said.
Andrea nodded that she was satisfied with this answer and then looked to Elian to ask the next question.
How much does it cost to hire a Salt Lake City negligent security lawyer?
“How much is Andrea’s claim worth?” Elian asked.
We told them that it would be impossible to accurately toss out a number without additional information.
“Specifically, we’ll need to conduct a thorough investigation, including speaking to witnesses and gathering evidence,” the lawyer said. “We’ll also need to get a clear understanding of your damages, Andrea.”
Andrea showed Eli her notes and he said, “There were no witnesses, she was the only one there.”
“That may be true, but we’re also referring to finding out whether there have been other incidents in the parking garage, what, if any, security the building has, that sort of thing. We’ll do the research and work up your case as if it’s going all the way to court,” the lawyer told Andrea.
“To figure out your damages, we’ll need you to reach maximum medical improvement. This is the point at which your doctors would consider you to be back to your ‘normal’ level of health,” the lawyer said. Seeing Andrea’s eyes drop to her bandaged hand, he continued, “And if your former ‘normal’ is no longer attainable, we’ll need you to recover to a ‘new normal.’”
Elian squeezed his fiancé’s right hand. “You can wear your wedding rings on your right hand,” he smiled. Andrea returned the smile briefly, still clearly anxious as talk of her missing finger arose.
“To reach maximum medical improvement,” the lawyer continued, “you’ll need to channel all of your energy into your recovery. This means getting as much rest as possible and carefully following your doctor’s treatment plan.”
“She can’t sleep, has nightmares every night.” Elian volunteered. “It must be torment,” he added, putting an arm around Andrea’s shoulders as she studied her lap, willing the tears not to fall.
“Andrea, this is important. Your rest is important, and so is your mental health. It’s critical for your wellbeing and it’s relevant to your damages.
Your nightmares are something you need to share with your doctor as soon as you leave this meeting, whether you pursue a claim with us or someone else. Your doctor will give you suggestions for moving through this and will probably have a counseling recommendation.
“There is life after your terrifying experience, Andrea. It’s very important that you speak up and ask for help for your anxiety.”
Andrea quietly wiped the tears that refused to be contained and nodded. She would call today.
“Now, when you reach maximum medical improvement, it’s going to mean you’re through with surgeries and we have a concrete understanding of what the future of your medical care looks like for your injuries,” the lawyer said.
“When you reach this point, we’ll know what your economic and non-economic damages are. That’s when we can tell you the value of your case.”
Elian and Andrea both nodded that they understood.
How long will my negligent security claim take?
“Can you please tell us how long a case like this will take?” Elian asked.
“Unfortunately, this is also something we can’t accurately predict at the start. This is because your case timeline will depend on two factors, the first of which is how long it takes you to reach maximum medical improvement.
“Your claim can only move as fast as the speed of your recovery, Andrea, because we need to have an accurate assessment of your damages to get you enough compensation for all the ways you’ve been harmed.
“Once we now your damages, we’ll send the insurance companies a demand letter.”
“Wait,” said Elian. “Companies? There will be more than one?”
“It’s likely. If the company Andrea works for doesn’t own the building, we may be looking at the owner of the building, and probably a property management company.
“It doesn’t appear as if there is a security company involved, but we’re going to look into what, if any security was provided by your employer, the building owner, and the building manager. Someone managed to get into the building undetected with malicious intent,” said the lawyer.
“The second factor in determining your case timeline is how the insurance companies respond to our demand letter. If they are agreeable and fair about your settlement, we can wrap up your case without further delay. If not, we’ll take them to court.
Seeing the look of alarm on Andrea’s face, the lawyer said, “Most claims are settled before they get to trial, Andrea, but if yours doesn’t, we have the skill and experience to take the insurance companies before a jury.
“The fact that our reputation is well known by the insurance companies sometimes encourages them to agree to a fair settlement to avoid facing us in court.
“Either way, we’ll be ready, so please don’t let the possibility of a trial worry you. We’ve got a long record of wins in negligent security cases, via settlement and in the courtroom.
“We’d love to be there to guide you through your case no matter which way it goes, Andrea, so you can focus only on your recovery,” the lawyer said. “But no matter who you retain for your claim, we definitely recommend you hire a trial attorney with a successful track record in negligent security cases.”
Andrea did retain our firm and we are happy to say we got her seven times the amount the insurance companies initially offered her.
Call Our Salt Lake City Negligent Security Lawyer Today
We hope this web page has provided you with answers to some of your questions about a negligent security claim. Every case is unique, however, and we invite you to contact our Salt Lake City negligent security lawyer to schedule your free legal consultation as soon as possible. You are not alone in this. Let us help you get the compensation you deserve.