What Is Considered A Slip And Fall Accident

Readers may have read our previous article explaining Slip and Fall Accident. Some readers, however, may be curious about some more definitive cases of what are considered “slip and falls” before the courts which permit recovery or compensation. The following are some illustrative cases of the range and scope of these types of cases.

Ultimately, slip and fall cases hinge on the interpretation of the Occupier’s Liability Act. Under that Act, at s. 3(1), the statute says that “an occupier of premises owes a duty to take care… as is reasonable in the circumstances to see that people entering the premises are reasonably safe.” Therefore, an occupier of a premise has a duty under the law to make sure that people who are on the property are safe! It is important to distinguish that a legal “occupier” refers to the host, landlord, or owner of a premises and not the bystander person who is on the property.

The court will therefore look at whether there exists a legal duty of care owed? Secondly, if so, did the occupier exercise the requisite standard of care? Was it reasonable in the circumstances? These are all tough legal questions, which can be clarified with some assistance from case law.

A leading case is Kerr v Loblaws. In this case the courts said that the duty for the occupier is to make the premises reasonably safe. This does not mean that the defendant needs to protect against all hazards or unforeseen and unreasonable ones. There just needs to be evidence that the occupier took reasonable steps to make the premises reasonably safe.

In Garofalo v Canada Safeway a plaintiff slipped and injured herself on a piece of fruit in a grocery store. The Court found that while the grocery store owner had a duty of care, they had discharged their duty by having a reasonable cleaning and maintenance system in place.

As the winter season approaches, there are also a number of cases having to do with slip and falls on city property such as city sidewalks due to icy and snowy conditions. For this, see our previous article here.

If you feel that you are a victim of a slip and fall case on private or public property, we suggest that you contact us today. As each slip and fall case is decided on factual merits, it is best to speak to a lawyer to determine what legal options are available. Call us now!