Premises Liability what are the circumstances to sue someone's homeowner insurance?

[needadvice35]

My boyfriend and I were at a bbq at my friend's boyfriend's house. He has a long wide driveway (rectangular shape) with a section to the right that was dirt and not paved. There was a 4'' drop off the side of the driveway onto the dirt. As we were leaving, walking down the driveway (which had no lights), my boyfriend tripped off the side of the driveway onto the dirt and fell and broke his ankle. We were unaware that this portion of the driveway had a 4'' dip and we were unable to see because there were no lights. My boyfriend is now out of work for 8-12 weeks and he is a home builder. Are we able to sue their homeowner's insurance?

 

[army judge]

Anyone of us is free to sue anyone of us.
All that is required is a small filing fee.

That isn't the question you should be asking.

You need to know if you have a cause of action.

That is a very tricky question.

I suggest you speak to a local attorney or two.

The initial consultation is free.

Be prepared for the insurance company to resist your allegations.

They will defend very vigorously.

Don't answer here, but they will want to know if he had been drinking, especially at an all day BBQ.

Good luck.

 

[mightymoose]

If you tried to sue me for this my questions, among many others, would be, "Why didn't he use a flashlight? Didn't he see the lip when he parked there and walked away from the car?"

Also..... "Was he drunk, or had he been drinking?" I strongly suspect that after leaving the bbq the answer to that one is "Yes".

Had the trip happened in a more common area and been a result of some kind of negligence or omission of some duty then you might get somewhere. As you describe it I don't think there is a strong argument to make.... but as stated above, you can certainly make the argument and see where it goes.