How Many Garage Door Injuries Per Year?

From 2015 to 2024, about 163,324 injuries related to garage doors were treated in U.S. emergency rooms. This averages about 16,300 garage door injuries treated in U.S. emergency rooms each year, according to data from the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission’s National Electronic Injury Surveillance System (NEISS).

Garage doors can cause injuries in several ways. They might fall or close unexpectedly, pinch fingers, or involve broken springs and cables. Accidents can also happen with automatic openers. Garage doors are heavy, and their springs are under a lot of tension. So, repairs and adjustments can be dangerous and may cause serious injuries.

If this happened to you or someone you love, California law may allow you to seek compensation. A negligent property owner, installer, or manufacturer could be held responsible for your injuries.

Common Causes And Types Of Garage Door Injuries

Garage door injuries range from minor to severe. They usually stem from defective parts, poor upkeep, or missing safety features. These doors run under heavy tension, supported by their springs and cables. When these parts fail, the results can be serious. Commercial garage doors can pose similar hazards and may involve larger, heavier equipment.

Common injuries from garage door failures include:

• Crushed or Amputated Fingers: caught between panels, rollers, or tracks.
• Deep Lacerations: from broken window glass.
• Concussions and Head Injuries: from a falling door.
• Broken Bones: especially to the hands, wrists, and arms.

Potential causes of garage door injuries include:

• Faulty Safety Sensors: that fail to detect a person in the door’s path.
• Broken Torsion Springs or Cables: that cause the door to drop without warning.
• Improper Installation: where poor setup results in unstable, unsafe movement from the start.
• Lack of Maintenance: where skipped inspections allow worn parts to fail over time.

After any garage door incident, see a doctor right away. A medical exam documents your condition and creates a record you may need later. Depending on the cause, an injured person may have a claim against the responsible party.

Who Can Be Held Liable For A Garage Door Accident?

A garage door accident can involve more than one liable party, meaning one or more people or companies are legally at fault for the harm. The root cause of the accident determines who is responsible. Under California law, that could be a property owner, a product maker, or a repair company.

• Property Owners and Landlords: Owners and landlords have a legal duty to use reasonable care to keep their garage doors in a safe condition. If a known hazard was not fixed and someone got hurt, the owner may be liable. Parking garage accident lawyers can help determine the owner’s responsibility.
• Manufacturers: If a door or part was defective, the manufacturer may face strict liability. You generally do not need to prove that the manufacturer was negligent. Still, you must establish an applicable manufacturing, design, or warning defect and show that the defect was a substantial factor in causing your injury.
• Installation and Maintenance Companies: Improper installation or repair can make a garage door unsafe. If a contractor’s negligent work caused your injury, the contractor may be held liable.

California Senate Bill 969 (SB 969) took effect on July 1, 2019, and requires certain residential automatic garage door openers sold or installed in California to include a battery backup. This requirement may become relevant if the lack of a required backup contributed to an accident.

What Compensation Is Available For Garage Door Injuries?

If a garage door hurts you because of someone else’s fault or a defective part, you may be able to seek money for your losses. California law lets injury victims recover two kinds of damages: economic and non-economic. The amount you recover depends on your case facts.

Here is what may be available to you:

• Economic Damages: Medical bills, physical therapy, surgery, lost income, and property damage, like vehicle repairs.
• Non-Economic Damages: Pain and suffering, emotional distress, and loss of enjoyment of life.

When a garage door accident kills someone, family members may have legal options. In California, if someone else caused a death or if a product was faulty, a spouse, domestic partner, or surviving child can file a wrongful death claim. These claims may cover funeral costs, lost financial support, and loss of companionship.

Seeking free advice from a garage door injury lawyer can help you understand which damages apply. The sooner you act, the better your chances of preserving the evidence you need.

What To Do After An Accident And Legal Deadlines

After a garage door accident, avoid repairing, altering, or discarding broken parts if it is safe to do so. Preserve items such as snapped springs, frayed cables, and detached panels so they can be inspected later if necessary. California also imposes strict filing deadlines that can end your right to seek compensation if missed.

These steps protect both your health and the physical evidence your attorney will need. Take them in order of priority:

1. Seek Medical Attention: Get medical care immediately, even if your injuries seem minor. Some conditions, such as soft tissue damage or concussions, may not be apparent right away.
2. Document the Scene: Take photos of the scene, including the damaged door, broken components, and your visible injuries, before anything is moved or repaired, if possible.
3. Preserve Broken Parts: Keep snapped springs, frayed cables, or detached panels in a safe place. Do not discard them, as they serve as critical physical evidence.
4. Report the Incident: Notify the property owner, landlord, or employer in writing as soon as possible.
5. Gather Witness Information: Collect the names and contact details of anyone who saw the accident.

California law sets strict deadlines for filing a personal injury claim. This is a legal action you take to seek money for your injuries and losses. Under California Code of Civil Procedure (CCP) §335.1, you generally have two years from the date of injury to file a lawsuit. In some cases, California’s delayed-discovery rule can delay the accrual of the claim. This happens until you discover, or should have discovered, the injury and its cause.

If a public entity is at fault, Government Code §911.2 generally requires you to file a government claim within six months after the claim accrues.

• If a public entity rejects your government claim and provides the required written notice, you generally have six months to file your lawsuit. The six-month period runs from the date the rejection notice is personally delivered or deposited in the mail.
• If the required written notice is not given, a different deadline may apply, generally up to two years from accrual of the cause of action.

Wrongful death claims usually have a two-year deadline. This period starts from the date of death. These are claims brought by surviving family members when a loved one dies due to another party’s negligence. Missing any of these deadlines typically means losing your right to seek compensation. Speaking with a personal injury attorney as soon as possible gives you the best chance of protecting your claim before time runs out.

Frequently Asked Questions About Garage Door Accidents

After a garage door accident, you may have questions specific to your situation. You might wonder whether your landlord is at fault, how your own actions affect your claim, or how to afford an attorney. Below, you can find the answers to those questions:

Do Lawyers Only Get Paid If They Win?

Yes. Most personal injury attorneys work on a contingency fee basis, so you owe no fees unless your case resolves in your favor. The lawyer takes a set percentage of your final settlement or court award. If you lose, you generally don’t owe attorney fees. This fee arrangement helps you to get legal assistance without an upfront payment.

Can Garage Door Injuries Be Fatal?

Yes. Fatal garage door accidents have been documented, including cases involving children trapped under closing doors and adults who suffered severe head injuries. Fatal garage door accidents involving workers have occurred recently. For example, in 2024, a 58-year-old worker was removing a panel from an old overhead garage door. The panel slipped and struck him, causing him to fall onto the concrete. He suffered head injuries and died 20 days later.

Can I Sue If the Garage Door Was in My Rental Home?

Yes. If your landlord knew about a problem with the garage door and failed to fix it, they may be held liable (legally responsible) for your injuries. Under premises liability laws, landlords must maintain essential features in a safe condition. The fact that you were renting rather than owning the property does not prevent a claim.

However, the landlord is not automatically liable simply because the accident happened at a rental property. You usually need proof that links someone’s carelessness or a faulty product to the accident.

Depending on what failed, possible defendants could include the landlord, property management company, garage door repair or installation company, and potentially the manufacturer or distributor of a defective door, opener, spring, sensor, or other component.

What If I Was Injured While Trying to Fix the Garage Door Myself?

Trying to repair the garage door yourself does not automatically prevent you from suing a California landlord. However, it can affect how faults and damages are evaluated. In California, you can still get damages even if you’re partly to blame. However, your share of fault may lower the total amount.

How Do I Know If the Garage Door Had a Manufacturing Defect?

A product safety or engineering expert can check the parts. They can determine whether a defect caused the failure rather than normal wear. Also, checking the exact model and serial number against CPSC records is worthwhile. In February 2023, CPSC recalled about 96,400 LiftMaster myQ garage-door control panels. They found that the secondary entrapment-protection system might fail. This could let a garage door close even if there’s an obstruction.

Are Commercial Garage Door Accidents Different From Residential Ones?

Commercial garage door accidents can be different from residential ones. This is because they follow different safety standards, equipment, and legal rules. Commercial doors are larger and used more often. Accidents can happen with roll-up doors, cables, springs, operators, or from poor maintenance. Liability can fall on the property owner, property manager, installer, maintenance contractor, or manufacturer. It depends on what caused the failure.

If the accident happened at work in California, workers’ compensation might cover the employee’s injuries. Also, a separate claim could be made against a third party. This could be a careless maintenance company or a manufacturer of a defective product. Checking maintenance records, past complaints, safety devices, and failed parts is crucial for identifying responsibility.

Get Help From A California Garage Door Accident Lawyer

Evidence in garage door accident cases can disappear quickly. Security video retention depends on the system, storage space, and settings. So, request and quickly save important footage. Maintenance records may also be lost, overwritten, or discarded over time. Acting quickly protects your claim.

If a garage door hurts you or someone you love, contact Arash Law about your legal options. Our attorneys offer a free consultation to help you understand your rights. Call (888) 488-1391 to protect your rights. AK Law handles every personal injury case on a contingency fee basis, which means you owe no attorney fees unless we win your case.

Although we can’t promise a specific outcome for your case, our past results can show you how we handle cases and what we can do for you:

• $18,700,000: The case involved our 18-year-old client, who sustained devastating injuries while working on the Defendant’s farm. He was riding the defendant’s tractor when the tractor entered a hole in the ground. The sudden movement caused the machinery to give way and fall onto our client, severely crushing his legs. Though the defendant denied any responsibility for the incident, we secured an $18.7 million award.
• $3,680,000: What started as a typical personal injury or workers’ compensation case turned into a product liability claim. Successfully managing these complex legal issues demonstrates the strength of our process. It also highlights the teamwork that led to this great outcome.
• $2,200,000: The employer lacked workers’ compensation coverage. However, we found another way to recover through the company’s general liability insurance policy. The claim arose after our client, who worked repairing air compressors, was seriously injured when a unit exploded during a repair. The blast caused serious injuries to his lower body. His legs and knees were damaged, needing several surgeries. We pursued the available liability coverage. This helped us secure the full policy limits to cover his critical medical treatment.

(No guarantee of outcome. Results displayed were dependent on unique facts of that case, and different facts will bring different results.)