The weather in Illinois is brutal right now. The low in Chicago today is one degree. I guess that’s better than the minus four degrees we experienced yesterday.
With the cold weather of course comes snow and ice. That leads to a lot of slip and fall injuries unfortunately.
Regrettably a lot of the people who call us with these injuries we can not help. That’s because of an Illinois law that says that if you fall due to the natural accumulation of snow or ice and sustain an injury, the property owner isn’t liable.
What does natural mean? Generally speaking it’s what happens because of what happens naturally due to the weather conditions. So if you are walking in a parking lot and you slip on ice, that’s probably not a case against the property owner. Unnatural would be something like ice that forms from coming off an awning or a gutter spout.
And if you fall because your landlord didn’t shovel or salt the area, that’s usually not a case either. They can’t be expected to do that while the bad weather is occurring and generally speaking don’t have a legal obligation to do this at all.
So are injuries from falls on snow or ice doomed? No. There are a bunch of ways to win these cases.
If the property or business owner does clear the area, but does so in a negligent way, that could lead to a case.
But the biggest thing you should look out for is was there someone who was contractually obligated to clear or salt the area that failed to do so. In many apartment buildings, office complexes and places open to the public, the property owners contract with companies to have these areas cleared so people can walk safely. They aren’t responsible for doing that 24/7, but if it snows hard on a Monday and they haven’t cleared it by Wednesday, that may put liability on them and/or the property owner.
These aren’t things you’ll think of as you lay on the ground in terrible pain, but you should think of as soon as you reasonably can. You can ask your boss, landlord, etc. You can look at a copy of your lease to see if it says anything about it. You can even ask the people who eventually do clean or salt an area how often they are supposed to be there.
It’s not a slam dunk, but in my experience, if you want to win these difficult cases and be compensated for your injuries, this is often the best way to do so.
And of course, if you have any questions as to if you even have a case or want an attorney recommendation, please call us any time at 312-346-5320.