A business or property owner can be liable for a third party's criminal attack — but Georgia's 2025 tort reform codified strict new rules (O.C.G.A. §§ 51-3-50 to 51-3-57, for claims brought after April 22, 2025): you must generally show the owner had a particularized warning of imminent harm, or should have known the danger from prior similar crimes, and failed to use ordinary care. The deadline remains two years (§ 9-3-33).
What a negligent security claim actually is
When someone is robbed, assaulted, or shot at an apartment complex, gas station, shopping center, or parking lot, the criminal is liable — and usually uncollectable. Negligent security law asks a second question: did the property owner fail to take reasonable steps against a danger it knew about? Broken gates and dead camera systems at a complex with a string of break-ins, an unlit parking lot where robberies kept happening, no security at a business that knew its corner drew violence — that's the territory.
These claims sit inside premises liability, but since 2025 they run on their own statutory track.
Georgia's 2025 rewrite: what you must prove now
As part of the SB 68 tort reform, Georgia codified negligent security into new code sections — O.C.G.A. §§ 51-3-50 through 51-3-57 — that supersede the old common-law claims for cases brought after April 22, 2025. The core showing: the owner either had a particularized warning of imminent harm, or reasonably should have known third-party crime was likely based on prior occurrences of similar harmful conduct — plus that the injury was reasonably foreseeable and the owner failed to exercise ordinary care to remedy or mitigate the risk.
The statutes also hand owners specific defenses — among them that the victim was trespassing, the injury occurred off the premises, the owner couldn't exclude the wrongdoer, or the owner called 911 and tried to prevent the harm — and the claim doesn't apply to single-family homes. It's a genuinely higher bar than the old law. It is not a wall.
The evidence that still wins these cases
The new standard makes crime history the battleground: 911 call logs and police reports for the address, prior incident reports in the owner's own files, security assessments the owner commissioned and shelved, tenant complaints about broken gates and lights. If similar crimes kept happening and the owner's response was nothing, the statutory showing is on the table.
Condition evidence still matters too — photographs of the broken gate, the dark lot, the propped door, taken before repairs quietly follow the incident. And because the jury now apportions fault among the owner, the criminal, and others (O.C.G.A. § 51-12-33), building the owner's share with specifics is what the case is.
What to do after an attack at a Douglasville property
Report to police immediately and get medical care — both create the records the civil case needs. Georgia's Crime Victims Compensation Program can also help with immediate costs for victims of violent crime, generally requiring a police report within 72 hours. Then preserve: photos of the property's condition, names of witnesses and employees, and any communication showing the owner knew about prior incidents.
These cases are sensitive, and the consultation is confidential. Dream Team Law evaluates negligent security claims across Douglas County under the new statutes from our Atlanta office — free case review, no fee unless we win.
Frequently asked questions
Can a business really be held liable for a criminal's attack in Georgia?+
Yes, in defined circumstances. Under the 2025 statutes, the owner must have had a particularized warning of imminent harm or reason to know from prior similar crimes that the danger existed, and must have failed to use ordinary care to address it. The criminal's own liability doesn't erase the owner's — fault is apportioned between them.
What changed under Georgia's 2025 negligent security law?+
SB 68 replaced the old common-law claim with specific code sections (O.C.G.A. §§ 51-3-50 to 51-3-57) for claims brought after April 22, 2025. The proof requirements are tighter — particularized warning or prior similar occurrences — and owners gained enumerated defenses. Strong crime-history evidence matters more than ever.
Does it matter that my attacker was never caught?+
You can still pursue the negligent security claim — it targets the owner's failures, not the criminal's identity. Be aware the jury will apportion some fault to the attacker even in absentia, which reduces the owner's share; an experienced lawyer builds the case with that math in mind.
This article is for general information only and is not legal advice; reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. Deadlines depend on the specific facts of your case — consult a licensed Florida attorney about your situation. Attorney advertising. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome.