What is negligent security and how is it different from a regular slip and fall claim?

Negligent security is a type of premises liability claim where a property owner is held responsible for injuries caused by a third-party criminal act that could have been prevented with reasonable security measures. Unlike a slip and fall, which involves a physical hazard on the property, negligent security claims focus on the owner's failure to protect visitors from foreseeable criminal activity, such as assault, robbery, or sexual assault. Both types of claims fall under Florida premises liability law, but negligent security cases typically involve a more complex investigation into the property's crime history and security protocols.

Can I still recover compensation if the attacker was never caught or convicted?

Yes. A negligent security claim is a civil lawsuit against the property owner, not a criminal case against the attacker. You don't need a criminal conviction, or even an identified attacker, to pursue a civil claim. The focus is on whether the property owner's failure to provide reasonable security was a proximate cause of your injuries, which is a separate legal question from who committed the crime.

What types of properties can be held liable for negligent security in Florida?

Almost any commercial or residential property that invites members of the public can face a negligent security claim, including apartment complexes, hotels, shopping centers, parking garages, bars and nightclubs, office buildings, and schools. The key factor under Florida law is whether the property owner knew or should have known about the risk of criminal activity based on prior incidents at or near the location, and whether reasonable security measures could have prevented the harm.

How long do I have to file a negligent security lawsuit in Florida?

Florida's statute of limitations for personal injury claims, including negligent security cases, is two years from the date of the injury under Fl. Stat. § 95.11. Missing this deadline almost always bars you from recovering any compensation, regardless of how strong your case is. If you were injured recently, contacting an attorney as soon as possible protects your right to file and gives your legal team the best chance to preserve critical evidence.

What if the property owner claims the attack was unforeseeable?

Foreseeability is the central battleground in most negligent security cases, and property owners and their insurers routinely argue that a criminal attack was unexpected and therefore not their responsibility. Feingold, Posner & Draizin counters this argument by pulling police incident reports, crime statistics, and any prior complaints filed with the property to establish a documented pattern of criminal activity. Our attorneys know this defense tactic well because it's one they used themselves when working on the insurance defense side, and they know how insurers typically present and defend those arguments.

Fort Lauderdale Negligent Security Lawyer | Inadequate Security Attorney South Florida

When a Property Owner's Negligence Puts You in Danger

Being the victim of a violent crime is terrifying. But when that crime happened because a property owner failed to take basic security precautions, the trauma runs even deeper. If you were attacked, assaulted, or robbed on someone else's property, you may need a Fort Lauderdale negligent security lawyer who understands exactly how these cases are won and lost.

Negligent security is a branch of premises liability under Florida law. Property owners owe a legal duty of care to lawful visitors, and when they fail to provide adequate security measures, they can be held financially responsible for injuries caused by third-party criminal acts. Florida courts have long recognized negligent security claims under appropriate circumstances.

What makes these cases especially difficult is that you're often victimized twice. First by the attacker, then by an insurance company working hard to minimize or deny your claim. That's where Feingold, Posner & Draizin changes the equation. Our attorneys have spent years on the insurance defense side, and we know every tactic insurers use to fight these claims. We use that knowledge to fight back, aggressively and personally, for every client we represent.

With over 20 years of Florida Bar experience, an insider understanding of how property owners' insurers build their defenses, and millions recovered for injured clients across South Florida, Feingold, Posner & Draizin is ready to stand in your corner from day one.

Common Negligent Security Scenarios in Fort Lauderdale

Fort Lauderdale and Broward County are home to thousands of commercial properties, apartment complexes, hotels, entertainment venues, and parking facilities. Not all of them take their security obligations seriously. When they don't, people get hurt.

Negligent security claims can arise in a wide range of settings. Florida courts look closely at the specific location and its history when evaluating these cases, because foreseeability depends heavily on what the property owner knew or should have known about criminal activity at or near that site.

Apartment complexes and condominiums: Broken gate locks, non-functioning surveillance cameras, or absent security personnel that allow unauthorized access to residents and guests
Hotels and motels: Failure to rekey rooms between guests, inadequate lighting in hallways or parking areas, or lack of trained security staff on premises
Parking garages and lots: Poor lighting, no surveillance coverage, and no security patrols in areas with documented prior criminal activity
Bars, nightclubs, and entertainment venues: Undertrained or absent security staff, failure to control overcrowding, and inadequate screening at entry points
Retail stores and shopping centers: Lack of security guards or cameras in high-crime areas, and failure to respond to known loitering or threat patterns
Office buildings: Unsecured entry points, non-functional key card systems, or failure to conduct background checks on building personnel
Schools and universities: Inadequate perimeter security, poor lighting in common areas, or failure to respond to prior reported threats

The location matters because Florida courts analyze whether a reasonable property owner should have anticipated the risk of criminal activity based on what had already happened at or near that property. Prior incidents are central to building your case.

Florida Law and the Legal Standard for Negligent Security Claims

Negligent security claims are governed by Florida's premises liability law, rooted in Florida Statutes Chapter 768. That framework establishes the duty property owners owe to visitors based on their legal status: invitee, licensee, or trespasser.

Most victims of negligent security are invitees, meaning customers, tenants, hotel guests, or anyone invited onto the property for a business or public purpose. Invitees receive the highest duty of care under Florida law. Property owners must maintain reasonably safe conditions and warn of known dangers, including foreseeable criminal activity.

The Foreseeability Standard

The central legal question in every negligent security case is foreseeability. Florida courts ask whether a reasonable property owner should have anticipated the risk of criminal activity based on prior incidents at the location, the surrounding area's crime history, or obvious deficiencies in the property's security setup. The Florida Supreme Court's analysis in cases like Holiday Inns v. Shelburne has shaped how Florida courts evaluate this question, making documented crime history one of the most powerful tools in a plaintiff's case.

The Four Elements You Must Prove

To succeed on a negligent security claim in Florida, you must establish four elements:

Duty: The property owner owed a legal duty of care to you as a lawful visitor
Breach: The owner failed to implement reasonable security measures given the known or foreseeable risk of crime
Causation: That failure was a direct and proximate cause of the criminal attack and your resulting injuries
Damages: You suffered actual, compensable harm, whether physical, financial, or emotional

Comparative Fault and the Filing Deadline

Florida's modified comparative fault rule under Fl. Stat. § 768.81 means that if you're found partially at fault, your compensation is reduced proportionally. As of 2023, if a plaintiff is found more than 50% at fault, they are barred from recovery entirely. Insurers frequently try to use this statute to shift blame onto victims, claiming you were somewhere you shouldn't have been or that you provoked the situation. It's a tactic we've seen from the inside, and it's one we know how to counter.

Florida's statute of limitations for personal injury claims under Fl. Stat. § 95.11 gives you two years from the date of injury to file a negligent security lawsuit. Missing that deadline almost always means losing your right to recover, no matter how strong your case is.

Types of Injuries and Damages in Negligent Security Cases

Negligent security cases frequently involve serious, life-altering injuries. Because the underlying incidents are violent crimes, the harm is often far more severe than a typical premises liability claim. These aren't sprained ankles. These are injuries that change lives.

Common injuries in negligent security cases include:

Gunshot wounds and stab injuries
Traumatic brain injuries from assault or battery
Broken bones and fractures
Sexual assault and the lasting psychological trauma it causes
Soft tissue injuries, lacerations, and scarring
Post-traumatic stress disorder and other mental health conditions

Victims can pursue both economic and non-economic damages to address the full scope of their losses:

Medical expenses: Emergency treatment, surgeries, hospitalization, physical therapy, and future care needs
Lost wages: Income lost during recovery, plus diminished earning capacity if injuries are permanent
Pain and suffering: Physical pain, emotional distress, anxiety, depression, and loss of enjoyment of life
Psychological counseling: Therapy and mental health treatment stemming from the trauma
Property damage: Personal belongings stolen or damaged during the incident

In cases involving particularly egregious conduct, such as a property owner who knew about repeated violent incidents and did nothing, punitive damages may also be available under Fl. Stat. § 768.72. Putting a dollar value on trauma is never easy. But Feingold, Posner & Draizin works to identify every available category of damages supported by the evidence.

How Insurance Companies Defend Negligent Security Claims

Commercial property owners carry general liability insurance policies designed to cover premises liability claims, including negligent security. When you file a claim, these insurers don't sit back and wait. They immediately deploy experienced adjusters and defense attorneys to build a case against you.

Understanding what you're up against is the first step to beating it. Here are the most common defense tactics insurers use in negligent security cases:

Disputing foreseeability: Arguing there was no prior criminal activity at the location, making the attack "unforeseeable" and the owner not liable
Blaming the criminal: Pointing to the third-party attacker as the sole proximate cause of harm to deflect liability away from the property owner
Challenging comparative fault: Claiming you were partially or wholly responsible, for example by being in an area of the property you shouldn't have been, or by engaging with the attacker
Minimizing injury severity: Using independent medical examinations and surveillance to contest the extent of your physical and psychological injuries
Delaying the claims process: Wearing you down financially so you accept a lowball settlement before you understand what your case is actually worth

The attorneys at Feingold, Posner & Draizin spent years on the other side of these cases. One spent years as a shareholder at a prominent Florida insurance defense firm. Another worked as in-house counsel for a national auto insurance company. They handled these types of defenses for insurers and understand how they are used in negligent security claims.

That insider knowledge is your advantage. Because of that background, our legal team knows exactly what evidence insurers look for, what arguments they'll make, and how to counter them before the insurer ever gets the upper hand.

Building a Strong Negligent Security Case: Evidence and Investigation

Negligent security cases live or die on evidence. And evidence disappears fast. Surveillance footage gets overwritten within days. Witnesses forget details. Crime scene conditions change. Acting quickly after an incident isn't just helpful; it's critical to protecting your claim.

From the moment Feingold, Posner & Draizin is retained, our team moves immediately to preserve and gather the evidence that wins these cases:

Surveillance footage: Requesting and preserving video from the property and surrounding businesses before it's overwritten or deleted
Crime history records: Pulling police incident reports for the property and surrounding area to establish a documented pattern of prior criminal activity that demonstrates foreseeability
Security policies and staffing records: Subpoenaing the property owner's security protocols, guard schedules, and maintenance logs to identify where they fell short
Incident reports: Obtaining the property's own documentation of the attack and any prior complaints filed by tenants or visitors
Expert witnesses: Engaging certified security consultants to testify about industry-standard security practices and where the property owner's failures created a dangerous condition
Witness statements: Identifying and interviewing tenants, employees, or bystanders who observed security failures or the incident itself
Lease and contract documents: Reviewing agreements between property owners and security companies to establish who bore legal responsibility for maintaining safety

Florida law may allow courts to impose sanctions when relevant evidence is destroyed after a party has notice of anticipated litigation. Having an attorney in place early puts the property owner and their insurer on notice that evidence must be retained.

Every step of this investigation is handled personally by our attorneys. You won't be handed off to a case manager or paralegal. We handle it ourselves, because that's the standard we hold ourselves to for every client.

Why Hire Feingold, Posner & Draizin for Your Negligent Security Claim

Being the victim of a violent crime on someone else's property is one of the most traumatic experiences a person can go through. At Feingold, Posner & Draizin, we don't see clients as case numbers. We treat every person the way we'd treat a member of our own family, with the same dedication, the same urgency, and the same refusal to back down.

What sets us apart isn't just our track record. It's where we came from. Our attorneys spent years defending property owners and insurance companies before switching sides. They know how insurers evaluate, minimize, and fight negligent security claims from the inside. That knowledge helps us anticipate and respond to the strategies insurers use to challenge negligent security claims.

Our attorneys have been admitted to the Florida Bar since 2004, bringing over two decades of combined experience to every case. One holds an AV Preeminent® Peer Review Rating from Martindale-Hubbell, the highest peer rating available, and was named a Florida Super Lawyers® Rising Star five consecutive years. That same attorney is a published author in the Florida Bar's Florida Automobile Insurance Law Practice Manual and serves as a court-appointed guardian for injured minors, a reflection of the trust Florida courts place in our team.

Feingold, Posner & Draizin handles cases on a strict contingency fee basis. You pay nothing unless we recover for you. We offer free, no-obligation consultations so you can speak with an attorney today at no cost. We work to pursue every available source of compensation supported by the evidence and the law.

Contact a Fort Lauderdale Negligent Security Lawyer at Feingold, Posner & Draizin Today

Surveillance footage gets overwritten. Police records get harder to obtain. Witnesses move on. Every day that passes after a negligent security incident is a day that critical evidence may be lost forever, and a day closer to the two-year filing deadline that could bar your claim entirely.

If you or someone you love was attacked or injured because a property owner failed to provide adequate security, you don't have to face this alone. Feingold, Posner & Draizin is ready to fight for the compensation you may be entitled to pursue under Florida law. As an inadequate security attorney serving South Florida, our team handles claims throughout Fort Lauderdale, Broward County, Miami-Dade, Palm Beach, and surrounding communities.

Your consultation is free. You pay nothing unless we recover for you. Call us today at 954-953-5861, or reach out through our online contact form. CONTACT us today, and let's get to work.

Fort Lauderdale Negligent Security Lawyer