When a property owner ignores a known danger and a preventable crime follows, the owner can be held accountable for the harm that results.
Negligent security is a type of premises liability claim. The core idea is straightforward: businesses and property owners who invite the public onto their property—apartment complexes, hotels, bars and nightclubs, shopping centers, parking garages, gas stations, and similar places—have a legal duty to take reasonable measures to protect the people there from foreseeable criminal acts by third parties.
Texas courts recognize that a property owner generally has no duty to protect against random, unforeseeable crime. The duty arises when criminal conduct is foreseeable. Foreseeability is most often shown by what is sometimes called the "specific previous crimes" or totality-of-the-circumstances analysis: how recently, how often, and how similar prior crimes were on or near the property, how close they were geographically, and how publicized the danger was. A complex with a documented history of assaults, break-ins, or shootings is on notice that violent crime is likely to happen again—and is expected to respond reasonably.
When a property owner knows (or should know) of that danger and fails to take reasonable precautions—working gates and locks, adequate lighting, functioning cameras, security patrols where warranted, controlled access—and a tenant or guest is then assaulted, robbed, or killed in a way those precautions could have prevented, the owner's negligence may be a legal cause of the harm. These cases are about accountability for a preventable failure, not about guaranteeing that crime will never occur.
In Texas, most personal injury claims—including negligent security—must be filed within two years of the incident under the Civil Practice and Remedies Code. There are limited exceptions (for example, claims on behalf of minors may be tolled), but evidence at a crime scene disappears quickly, so time is critical from day one.
The criminal who committed the assault is, of course, responsible—but that person is frequently never caught, or has no insurance or assets. The value of a negligent security claim usually lies in identifying the businesses and entities whose failures created the opportunity for the crime. Depending on the facts, those may include:
Untangling who actually controlled the property and its safety decisions—and who was contractually responsible for security—is a central part of the investigation, and often determines whether there is meaningful insurance coverage to make a recovery possible.
Texas does not cap most damages in ordinary negligence cases. The categories of compensation potentially available include:
Texas follows a proportionate-responsibility (modified comparative fault) system: a claimant whose own share of responsibility is found to be greater than 50% is barred from recovering, and any recovery is reduced by the percentage of fault assigned to the claimant. Defense lawyers in these cases routinely try to shift blame onto the victim, which is one reason early, careful investigation matters so much.
Evidence in these cases vanishes fast—surveillance footage is often overwritten within days, and conditions get repaired after an incident. If you are able, preserve as much as possible and contact a lawyer quickly so formal preservation demands can go out. Helpful documentation includes:
No checklist can replace a real evaluation, but the following circumstances often point toward a viable negligent security claim:
If several of these describe what happened to you, it is worth having the facts reviewed. The sooner an investigation begins, the more evidence can be preserved.
This page provides general information about Texas law and is not legal advice. It does not create an attorney-client relationship, and the law's application depends on the specific facts of each case. For advice about your situation, speak with a licensed attorney.
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