An apartment fire injury claim is a claim by a tenant, guest or neighbor hurt in a fire in a rented building, brought against the landlord, property manager, contractor or manufacturer whose negligence caused the fire or allowed it to injure people. It can cover burns, smoke inhalation, injuries from escaping, and the loss of a home and belongings.
Blank Kim Injury Law represents residents of garden apartments, high-rise buildings, condominiums and rented townhouses across Northern Virginia, from Annandale, Springfield and Alexandria to Reston, Herndon, Tysons and Manassas. Attorneys Aaron Blank and Robert Kim work from our Fairfax office. Robert Kim speaks Korean, and our paralegal team speaks Spanish, so families can talk with us in the language they use at home.
Why apartment fires hurt so many people
A fire in a single family home is dangerous. A fire in a building where dozens of households share walls, hallways and stairwells can be far worse. Smoke travels through corridors, ducts and gaps around pipes. Residents on upper floors depend on a single stairwell. A fire that starts in one unit, often while its tenant is asleep or away, reaches people who did nothing to cause it.
Many of the injuries in apartment fires do not come from flames at all. They come from smoke inhalation, from falls on dark stairs, and from jumping from windows when a hallway fills with smoke. How a building was maintained has a great deal to do with whether residents get out safely.
Common causes of apartment and condo fires
| Cause | Who may be responsible |
|---|---|
| Faulty or overloaded wiring, outdated electrical panels | The landlord or property manager, and the electrical contractor |
| Heating equipment and water heaters that were poorly maintained | The landlord, and the maintenance or HVAC contractor |
| Clogged dryer vents in shared laundry rooms | The landlord or management company |
| Gas leaks from building lines or appliances | The landlord, the gas contractor or the appliance maker. See gas explosions. |
| Lithium-ion batteries in e-bikes, scooters and chargers | The product manufacturer or seller. See product liability. |
| A fire started carelessly in another unit | The other tenant, usually through their renters insurance, and possibly the landlord if the fire spread because of poor maintenance |
| Arson | The person who set it, and possibly the owner if security was inadequate. See negligent security. |
What a Virginia landlord is expected to do about fire safety
Virginia’s landlord and tenant laws, along with building and fire codes, set out duties for owners of rental housing. The exact requirements depend on the building, its age and the codes that apply to it, and we review them for each case. In general terms, fire claims against landlords often focus on whether the owner:
- Provided working smoke alarms and repaired or replaced them when told they were not working
- Kept wiring, heating systems and other building equipment in safe condition
- Kept stairwells, hallways and fire exits clear, lit and unlocked from the inside
- Maintained fire doors, fire alarms and, where a building has them, sprinklers
- Responded to tenant complaints about sparking outlets, gas odors or failed heat that led people to use space heaters
- Followed up on fire inspection findings
Written maintenance requests are often the most important evidence. A tenant portal message, an email or a text about a broken alarm or a burning smell can show the landlord knew about the danger. Save them.
Common hallways, stairwells and laundry rooms are usually in the landlord’s control. Property owners owe people they invite onto the premises reasonable care to keep them reasonably safe and to warn of hidden dangers they knew or should have known about.
Injuries from apartment fires
- Burns ranging from blistering to full thickness burns that need skin grafts. See burn injury claims.
- Smoke inhalation, which can damage the lungs and airways and cause carbon monoxide poisoning. See carbon monoxide poisoning claims.
- Brain injury from lack of oxygen. See brain injury claims.
- Broken bones and spinal injuries from falls or jumps while escaping
- Lasting scarring and disfigurement
- Post-traumatic stress, especially in children who lived through a night fire
Serious burn and smoke injuries in the region are often first treated at Inova Fairfax Medical Campus, the Level I trauma center, before transfer to a burn unit. Keep every record, including those from the ambulance crew.
What to do after an apartment fire
- Get medical care, even for what seems like a mild cough. Smoke injuries can worsen over the next day.
- Write down the fire department incident number, and ask who from the fire marshal’s office is investigating.
- Save your lease, rent receipts and every maintenance request or complaint you made, along with the landlord’s replies.
- Photograph your unit, hallways, alarms and exits when you are allowed back in, before cleanup begins.
- Make a list of belongings lost, with photos if you have them. Renters insurance, if you have it, may pay for property and temporary housing.
- Do not sign a lease termination, release or settlement from the landlord or its insurer before talking with a lawyer.
Landlords often begin repairs quickly, and the evidence of what failed can be lost within days. Start a free case review so we can ask the owner to preserve it.
Fault, insurance and filing deadlines
Virginia follows contributory negligence, so the landlord’s insurer may argue that a tenant caused the fire or made it worse, for example by disabling a smoke alarm or leaving a stove unattended. If you are found even slightly at fault, you are generally barred from recovering, which is why the fire investigation and the maintenance history matter so much. Read about contributory negligence in Virginia.
Virginia generally allows two years from the date of an injury to file a personal injury lawsuit, under Va. Code § 8.01-243(A). Claims for lost property have a separate, longer period under § 8.01-243(B). When a fire takes a life, the personal representative can bring a wrongful death claim, generally within two years of the death under Va. Code § 8.01-244(B).
Your lease may contain terms about liability and notice. Whether those terms hold up is a legal question, so have an attorney read the lease before you accept what it says.
