What duty does a store owner owe a customer in inclement conditions?
Slip and caught fall cases are traditionally based on the duty of care at the vesture of land close to and “invitee”. A business visitor of an invitee enters or remains on the premises directly or indirectly connected with the business dealings of the possessor.
Once a customer proves that conditions on the land caused their fall, look out.
The burden of proof in a court case will then shift to you, the business owner, to prove that you used reasonable care, under the circumstances, to discover the foreseeable dangerous condition, to correct the condition or to warn the customer.
Thus, you will be forced to prove that you used reasonable care to observe the conditions and possible hazards. This usually means regularly scheduled inspections. How often? Often enough. There is no set answer. However, ask yourself what a reasonable person would do in those circumstances.
You will then need to demonstrate that you took steps and corrected the problem or warned customers about the condition.
In short, if it is nasty outside you should post signage, inspect areas regularly and if necessary take abatement steps to eliminate the hazard. Does it increase your cost? Of course. But not as much as defending a lawsuit.
