Taylor & Ring Obtains $1.65 M Settlement For Students Injured By Collapsed Deck

By Taylor & Ring | December 14, 2016

— Santa Barbara property manager knew of structural issues, but failed to prevent the accident —

Los Angeles, CA – Taylor & Ring , a Los Angeles-based trial law firm, obtained a $1,650,000 settlement against Ronald L. Wolfe & Associates, property manager of a beachfront house in Isla Vista, where five students were injured when a wooden deck collapsed. Despite knowing that the house was plagued with termites and wood rot, Wolfe never addressed the problem. As a result, five students sustained injuries ranging from fractured bones and vertebrae to nerve damage and muscle tears.

” The property managers were well aware of the damage, and the issue could have been easily solved and would have prevented these five students from injury,” said Partner John C. Taylor. “Instead, they turned a blind eye, and the unsuspecting students suffered the consequences. Wolfe is very fortunate that no one was killed as a result of their negligence.”

In 2005, after taking on the management of the property, Wolfe was made aware of a wood rot and termite problem at the property, yet took no action. In the years that followed, Wolfe took no action to address the worsening damage caused by these conditions; even despite concerns expressed by an adjacent homeowner. A year before the collapse, Wolfe obtained reports from multiple pest control companies which called out the extensive damage to the subject deck. Again, Wolfe took no action, and failed to warn the tenants about the findings of the reports.

On April 6, 2013, five students visited the property for an annual college block party. Shortly after arriving, the second-story deck suddenly broke away from the house and collapsed, injuring the students both on and below the deck.

” Wolfe knew of these issues for more than a decade,” added Taylor. “They failed to take even basic measures to ensure the tenants were safe. “

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