Inspect Your Outdoor Deck Now to Avoid Later Financial Liability

Well, it’s May and the beginning of the busy summer entertaining season. For many, that means large gatherings of friends and family at home on outdoor decks. And Memorial Day, a traditional holiday weekend for families to get together, is just a few weeks away.

As the sudden collapse of an elevated deck in Evans Mills just reminded us, now is a good time to get out there and inspect your deck for any weaknesses that might lead to a sudden deck collapse and serious injuries to your family, friends, and neighbors. These injuries aren’t just troubling; they’re costly. And if you’re the homeowner whose deck collapses, you and your insurance company could be facing large financial payouts.

In Evans Mills, 5 of the 7 people on the deck when it fell had to be rushed to the hospital. Firefighters responding to the scene reported that the wood of the deck was rotten and the connections to the home were unstable. Our deck collapse injury lawyers note that timely inspections and repairs could have prevented the deck collapse. Even if the 5 injured victims had all been treated and released the same day, the homeowner at fault for the collapse could still be liable for tens of thousands of dollars in medical bills.

How to Help Ensure Your Deck’s Safety

The deck collapse injury lawyers at Denena Points, PC remind you to regularly inspect your backyard deck for safety issues and to make needed repairs to avoid the dangers of deck collapse, injuries, and heavy financial liabilities.

Check the deck thoroughly at least once per year; twice yearly inspections are even better. If you see any signs that your deck might be in need of replacement or repair, you might want to have a professional inspector experienced with outdoor structures take a look, confirm your opinion, and make professional recommendations regarding needed repairs.

Unfortunately, not all home inspectors are sufficiently familiar with deck and balcony safety to help you. If that’s the case in your local area, check whether the local university’s architecture or engineering department has any recommendations to make regarding locating qualified inspectors.

Always hire a licensed, reputable contractor to make any needed repairs or to rebuild the deck. Don’t try to do it yourself. And get the proper permits before you begin. The permitting process usually includes required inspections that help to identify safety hazards or risks that you might not otherwise recognize.

Older decks, even if properly constructed, weather and deteriorate over time. These structures can pose serious hazards of deck collapse, injury, and death.

9 things to look for when you check an older deck for safety:

1. Missing or loose connections: The failure of structural connections is one of the primary causes of deck collapses, and reportedly was a major factor in the Evans Mills deck collapse. Decks connection hardware should consist of appropriate bolts, screws, and metal connectors. If your deck was built using nails as the connecting hardware, our deck collapse injury lawyers emphasize that the structure could fail at any time.

2. Corrosion in the hardware connectors.

3. Loosening of the ledger board that connects the deck to the home: Most often, when a deck falls away from the main structure, it’s because the connection at the ledger board has separated and given way. Inadequate or absent flashing that allows moisture to creep in and cause rot, or the use of nails rather than bolts as connectors could lead to the sudden separation of the ledger board and deck from the house.

4. Loose or unstable stairs and stair rails.

5. Loose or unstable guardrails: Injuries or fatalities could result from a deck guardrail giving way suddenly. The costs of the resulting liability could greatly outweigh the minor costs of ongoing repairs to and maintenance of stable deck rails.

6. Cracked or split wood: Especially at the hardware connections, wood might show a tendency to split. What looks like a tiny crack could severely weaken the whole timber. Replace cracked or split wood before it gives way.

7. Rot: Humidity, moisture, and varying weather extremes could cause the wood of a deck to rot more quickly than you might think. Probe areas with something sharp like a screwdriver. If the metal sinks quickly and easily into the wood, then it might be rotten and in need of replacement. Our deck collapse injury lawyers caution that while many of the newer types of treated wood resist rot more readily than the older types, the treatments sometimes cause hardware to corrode more quickly than usual. Check what type of treated wood is best for your climate and environment.

8. Check concrete in your deck or its supports for cracking or flaking. This is especially important in seaside environments where salt, heat, and humidity can lead to structural failures more quickly than elsewhere. Water can penetrate concrete structures and collect inside, corroding steel and metal reinforcements. While this corrosion presents more of a danger in coastal areas in part due to salt, any seasonal variations in heat and humidity can stress concrete and metal over time. An unnoticed weakness in a seemingly solid concrete support could prove dangerous if the concrete suddenly cracks or crumbles or the steel reinforcement buckles.

9. Consider the stress of potential weight loads on your decks. Cast iron and stone patio furniture, steel furniture, heavy outdoor umbrella set ups, BBQ equipment, coolers full of ice and drinks, music equipment, or large potted plants can cause timber deterioration and stress. Adding a gathering of guests to the mix can tip the scales to the critical point. And then an improperly maintained and un-inspected deck with unnoticed safety issues could suddenly give way and bring your party to an abrupt and deadly halt.

After a deck collapse, you could face a horrific accident scene with distressed friends, family, and neighbors, and multiple catastrophic injuries or even fatalities. In addition to the costs of repairing or replacing your fallen deck, you might face the legal liability of paying for your guests’ costs from the accident, possibly over the course of their lifetimes if they received permanent injuries. Your own injuries from the devastating deck collapse accident might add to your burden.

Learn more about Deck Safety and What to do if a Deck Collapses: Download Your FREE Guide

Our FREE deck safety report could help you learn how to safely inspect and maintain your deck and avoid sudden deck collapses. But if a deck collapse occurs and you or your loved ones are injured, don’t hesitate to contact our experienced deck collapse injury lawyers at Denena Points, PC for afree, no obligation legal consultation. We’ll review the specific facts of the accident with you and help you evaluate your eligibility for fair financial compensation for your injuries.

Chad Points and Tony Denena are among the relative handful of attorneys nationwide with practical, successful experience involving complex structural collapse injury cases. We’ve helped injured victims obtain the fair financial recoveries they deserve after a needless injury in a collapse accident. We could help you too.

Call us direct at 713-807-9500 or fill out our online contact form to schedule your free legal consultation today. Put our veteran deck collapse injury lawyers’ 15 years of practical experience to work for your family’s benefit.