Whether you live in your home or rent it out, you can be held liable for injuries sustained on your property. You might be named in lawsuits and get stuck dealing with insurance headaches. That’s exactly why safety needs to be incorporated into your home’s design from the inside out. The way you plan your interior layout, the materials you choose, how you light your exterior, and the condition of your walkways all directly affect the safety of your space.
Here’s how to protect yourself, service professionals, guests, and renters by prioritizing safe design.
Design pathways for safe movement
Poor flow is one of the most overlooked hazards. Most people don’t consider how they move through a room until they trip over something or stub their toe. Safe design begins with making movement through a space and around furniture intuitive and unobstructed.
Some of the most unsafe interior pathway features to avoid include:
- Random steps that lead to other rooms. Sudden level changes are dangerous. Sunken living rooms and unexpected steps can look cool, but they’re a lawsuit waiting to happen. The last thing you want is for a service professional to make their way to the kitchen and trip over an unexpected step. While pros are typically bonded and insured, they might pursue compensation through a lawsuit if you don’t have insurance.
- Narrow walkways. Narrow walkways pose an increased risk of trips and collisions, especially in high-traffic areas. The ADA recommends having at least 36 inches of clear width for accessible routes.
- Oversized furniture in small spaces. Massive coffee tables and hallway tables are trendy and look good, but anything that sits in a main path is a hazard. If you don’t have the extra room to accommodate large furniture, opt for smaller pieces instead.
- Dark hallways. Hallways aren’t normally hard to navigate in the dark, but they are when you can’t see obstacles, like toys and other objects.
According to the CDC, falls are the leading cause of injury in homes. And every year, three million older adults land in the ER after falling in their own home, making safety a top priority.
Use slip-resistant materials
Some materials make floors look amazing until they turn into slip and fall hazards. Choosing the right materials is one of the easiest ways to prevent injuries on your property. For example, use heavily textured materials in high-risk areas where water is present, like kitchens and bathrooms. Polished tile looks amazing, but it’s a hazard when wet.
This rule applies outside as well. Slippery decks and walkways are dangerous on their own, but become major hazards when it rains, snows, or there’s a freeze.
Some people use area rugs to cover slippery floors, but they will slide if they’re not properly secured. Rugs can also create a trip hazard of their own. Instead of covering up slippery floors, change the material to something that has a little bit of grip or traction.
Prioritize lighting
Bad lighting creates hazards and makes existing hazards worse. Don’t make people guess what’s under their feet or ahead of them when they walk up to your front door or walk through your house. Installing motion sensor lights outside improves your security and creates better visibility. By illuminating outdoor pathways and steps, you make it safer for everyone, including yourself, to walk.
Maintain your yard
Your yard can become a hazard fast, especially if you have weeds that have thorns, stinging nettle, or plants that grow like vines. Design your yard to eliminate these hazards and keep up with clearing wet leaves and dead branches.
Steps or flights of stairs outside without railings are convenient, but dangerous and illegal. Install railings on all decks according to your local building codes and handrails anywhere you have an elevation change.
Eliminate sharp edges
Certain design trends are based on sharp lines, but that isn’t always a good idea, especially if you have young kids. For instance, rounded furniture edges on tables, desks, and chairs won’t hurt as much if someone bangs into them. If you don’t want to buy new furniture you can get protective corner guards designed to make sharp corners safer.
Secure all glass
If you have any glass in your home, like mirrors, make sure it’s secured. Whenever possible, opt for tempered or laminated glass to prevent it from shattering and causing serious injury.
Make safe design a priority
Beautiful spaces are nice, but they lose their charm when they’re a hazard. Every design choice you make has the potential to impact safety. If you want to avoid injuries and preventable lawsuits, prioritize safe design over dangerous aesthetic choices.
