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Keeping Your Home Safe for You and Your Guests

Frequently we think of safety when we are driving or in the workplace. Rarely do we take the time to think of our safety inside of our home, not just for ourselves but for our guests as well.

Some areas of you home that can lead to person injuries include: loose or missing railings and banisters; medications, cleaning supplies or other poisons within arm’s reach of children; and, water heaters at an unsafe temperature.

There are 5 key sources of injuries in the home:

1. Falls: Almost always accidental, and sometimes embarrassing. However, according to the Home Safety Council, falling claims 6,000 lives per year and is the leading cause of accidental home injury deaths.

2. Poisoning: This isn’t just limited to children getting into medications or cleaning products that they shouldn’t. Anyone taking medications that they don’t fully understand are at risk. For this reason consulting with a doctor prior to starting any new medications to check for any adverse interactions is of the utmost importance. However, it is just as important to keep medications and other poisons out of the reach of little ones.

3. Fires: Install and regularly maintain your smoke detectors. If you have natural gas in your home, install carbon monoxide detectors in all bedrooms. Review your escape plan with all those who share your home, let your children practice opening locked doors. Teach your children to “get out and don’t go back in” no matter what was left behind, and above all that fires are accidental and not their fault. Too often in the event of a fire, children hide in fear of getting in trouble, tell them to yell for help and not hide from emergency personnel.

4. Suffocation, Strangulation and Choking: This is a definite concern for children, who often put items we least expect in their mouths. Regularly check for loose objects, hanging cords, small toys, coins around your home. If you don’t have young children of your own and are expecting guests with little ones, ask them for a few childproofing tips to prepare for their arrival.

5. Water: This falls into two categories, firstly there is the water in the home and the risk of burns or scalds. To reduce the risk of burn from hot water, set the temperature of your hot water heater to 120° F. Outside of the home, there is of course risk associated with swimming pools or any other water source. Always supervise children around water, and keep them within arm’s reach.

Other areas to inspect for safety include:Personal Injury Lawyer for Accidents in the Home

  • Kitchen: knives secured out of reach, vitamins and medicine bottles out of reach, cleaning supplies secured, and keep working fire extinguisher nearby
  • Bedrooms: rugs are secured and cords for window coverings are out of reach
  • Outdoors: garden or power tools secured and out of reach and play structures are inspected
  • Bathrooms: outlets have ground fault circuit interrupters, nonskid strips on the bottoms of bathtubs and bath mats
  • Stairways: railings secure, stairs are uncluttered and well lit

Safety in your home isn’t just for you, but for your guests. Take the time to regularly walk in and around your home and check for potential hazards.

If you’ve been involved in a Personal Injury, and want to know your legal rights, contact us. Schedule your free initial consultation to discuss your case with Richard Breen Law Offices at 2950 Breckenridge Lane Suite 3, Louisville, KY 40220. You can call at 502-473-0579.

Cherie and Andrea
A drunk driver lost control and hit us. We wanted to protect our rights. He was an honest and very compassionate person and he worked hard to do what was best for his clients.
— Cherie and Andrea

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