If you fall on an icy sidewalk in Ohio, you may be able to file a personal injury lawsuit. Rules regarding slip and fall cases in Ohio and a business owner’s responsibility to keep the premises safe are distinct from those governing other types of negligence lawsuits and can be difficult to understand.
A property owner is not obligated to clear the area around their building of “natural” snow and ice accumulation. You may have heard of this as the “Winter Rule.” People do not like putting their health at stake just to go shopping, though. The property owner is liable for the effectiveness and completeness of snow and ice removal once they make the decision to do so. But if they don’t do anything to clear the snow and ice, they might say they have no responsibility for the public’s safety. Discuss your case with certified car accidents in Toledo.
To put it another way, these regulations favor business owners. Most state laws require property owners to fix potentially hazardous situations on their property if they know or should have known that customers or clients will be there (such as after a snowfall). We’ll talk about winning a lawsuit over a fall on an icy sidewalk below.
Potential Dangers of Slipping and Falling on an Icy Walkway
If a business owner outsources snow removal, for instance, it could be because they don’t have the necessary equipment or manpower. The snow is plowed by the company into a massive pile that is elevated above the rest of the parking lot. It’s dangerous for customers since the snow melts and then freezes again. A consumer could file a lawsuit if the buildup was “unnatural” and the proprietor either caused the unsafe state or gave permission for it to be established by a third party.
Disputes Involving Outside Parties
The owner’s responsibility for clearing snow from the property after a storm may have been delegated to a third party under the terms of a contract. There might be a way to sue the snow removal company separately if they were careless. The accumulation of snow in that scenario is not natural and was likely caused by carelessness. In this case, the third party may be held responsible for the owner’s negligent actions because the owner reasonably relied on them to do a good job.
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