Your employees rely on you to keep them safe while they are at work. From maintaining the parking lot to ensuring they have the safety gear they need, keeping them safe is a top priority for them. However, if you don’t maintain your commercial roof, then you could be exposing your business to liability.
What Is Liability?
In general, commercial liability is being legally responsible for something. As an employer, you have an obligation to protect your employees while they are at work. As such, if you are found negligent, you could face a lawsuit if your employees are harmed by your actions.
How Can Your Roof Be a Liability?
If you own the facilities in which you operate your business, then you are responsible for maintaining your building. Failing to do so is what exposes you to liability issues when it comes to your employees. Beyond your employees, if customers come into your facilities, then you may be placing them at risk too.
Ignoring a Leaky Roof
One of the most common problems with commercial roofs is a roof leak. Roof leaks can result from normal wear and tear, punctures following a tree falling on your roof, or damage due to debris. When your roof leaks, it’s not an isolated problem. In most cases, water from leaks stream down through the roof and affect other aspects of the building. Additionally, the water from the leak could undermine the ceiling’s durability. If parts of the ceiling fall on an employee or a customer, then you may be legally responsible for lost wages, hospital bills, and other damages.
Mold May Affect Your Employees’ Health
When you allow leaks to persist, then you increase the chances that mold will grow in your facilities. Although mold affects everyone differently, employees with respiratory problems or older employees are at risk when it comes to mold. If you are found to be negligent because you ignored your leak or ignored the mold growth, then your company may be responsible for making your employees whole financially.
You can avoid lawsuits by addressing any problems you have with your commercial roof immediately. At Intelligent Design, we are happy to assist you with all of your commercial roofing repairs. If you suspect you have a leaky roof, don’t hesitate to give us a call today.