While Apple has received much recognition for the all-glass exteriors that make their stores stand out from the rest, that distinctive design has a downside too, because it has now resulted in a premises liability lawsuit. Evelyn Paswall, a New York City grandmother, is suing the Calif.-based company for $1 million after she walked into the glass door at one of Apple’s Long Island locations and broke her nose. The 83-year-old was returning an iPhone at the company’s Manhasset store on Dec. 13, 2011, when she suffered the personal injury.
Paswall’s suit claims that the company neglected to provide proper warning about their exteriors. “My client is an octogenarian. She sees well, but she did not see any glass,” said her attorney, Derek T. Smith. “Apple wants to be cool and modern and have the type of architecture that would appeal to the tech crowd. But on the other hand, they have to appreciate the danger that this high-tech modern architecture poses to some people,” Smith said. The suit, filed in the U.S. Eastern District federal court, claims that, “The defendant was negligent . . . in allowing a clear, see-through glass wall and/or door to exist without proper warning.” Smith also added that, “The stereotypical Apple customer is a Gen-Y person or a teenager or a college student, but they have to realize that the elderly generation are their customers, too.”
This is not the first accident that has occurred at an Apple store, but it is the first lawsuit of its kind against the company. Given that the Queens grandmother suffered these personal injuries largely because the company was negligent towards the needs of seniors, she may be entitled to a large settlement in this personal injury case. Anyone hurt as the result of an accident on the premises of a negligent property owner should contact our New York City office today, because our experienced personal injury attorneys specialize in winning such cases.