Posted By Kirsty Davies2
Yes

Posted By Jason McQueen
The way I've been told it, and fortunately Ive not been in a position to have to test it, is that if you grit a road or pathway and someone slips you can be found at fault for not maintaining a suitable pathway etc. However, if you dont grit and someone slips then this would be treated as 'an act of God'.

Personally I would have thought that this would have been at odds with the Workplace Regs but you never know how courts sometimes go and thus establish precedent.

I'm sure someone else will elaborate further or correct what I have been told.

Posted By Raymond Rapp
The crux of the matter as I understand your post is gritting someone else's property, presumably adjacent to yours. I can't see that the landlord would object and nor do I see a scenario where you would be liable if someone did slip and fall. But there again, I am applying common sense (a rare beast these days) rather than than any legal precedent. That said, under the current test of negligence I cannot see where a successful claim could arise - crack on.

Ray

Posted By SteveD-M
Regulation 12 of the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations requires employers to ensure that the “surface of every traffic route in the workplace” is suitable for the purpose for which it is used and their surfaces are not slippery or have no substance on them that exposes employees to risk of slipping.

So if an employee slips on snow or ice, falls and hurts themselves as a result of a failure by the employer to grit, then they may have a compensation claim.

In Farrant v Essex County Council, the claimant successfully sued her employer for negligence when she slipped on the ice she was gritting.

However, this could go either way so again thanks to the law there is no straight answer.

I would have said you had a defence and whoever slipped would first raise the claim against the landlord and he may then choose to claim against you. For the sums involved being low I would have thought that unlikely. This is on the assumption that we are talking about a site in England or Wales as Scottish law on this matter is different.

Posted By JimE
or....

An employee slips in the car park, you as H&S bod inform maintenance who in turn inform the "landlord" who says it is your responsibility. The maintenance manager speaks with factory owner (leased property)who shrugs his shoulders and says its landlords responsibility.

Do you grit or not and wait for the possible accident and claim then let the court decide who is resposible?

JimE

Posted By Simon Walsh.
This may provide some assistance.

http://www.hse.gov.uk/slips/faq.htm#icyconditions

Posted By CFT
Addressing the specifics of your question, and in theory; Yes, with the right legal support; from a litigious point of view.

CFT

Posted By CFT
1. Yes to the first point, which I feel almost everyone will agree with; regulations inc OLA will comfortably support the need to take action.

Moving on then;

Your premises, either freehold, a lease without and a lease with. I refer to fully repairing fully maintaining here. You will have of course look after this property then, the car park? if it is just yours the same applies as in 1.

Private roads (estate) to approach your property, almost everyone will pay for this service by way of a service charge; it would be better to proactively have a system in place to ensure land owners/managing agents/landlords discharge their duties correctly way before any threat of slippery surfaces arise, thus, it gets done.

Shared car parks/paths etc, again down to service charge or work with the neighbours to achieve a satisfactory standard.

All it really comes down to (answering your original question) is, if you are going to grit a communal area, or someone else's property then all you need do is ensure it is done properly; there is little chance of an obscure liability claim being brought against you. I personally wouldn't, because of precedence; once done you need to keep it going for ever and a day, and to a minimum standard.

CFT