In Mississippi, a mall owner was found negligent for injuries awoman sustained after an assailant attacked her in a parking lot ofa shopping mall. A patron walking by saw the attack and reported itto security, who upon initial response found the assailant holdinga knife and the victim in the vehicle. The security guard called anassociate security guard for assistance then left the scene. Thevictim survived with non-life threatening injuries and was awarded$40,000 in damages.

The mall owner appealed, arguing that the the contract securitycompany was at fault. However, the appellate court affirmed thelower court's decision, citing that the mall owner could notdelegate his liability to the security company. While the exposurefor this did not end up being financially catastrophic, this isjust one of many examples of the necessity to manage servicesprovided in the areas of maintenance, janitorial and security forcommercial, healthcare and public enterprises.

Assessing exposures