Suing for ice on sidewalk

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP, you really asked the wrong audience. This board is full of rich people who have well-paying jobs that add very little to society and who believe that the rest of the world exists to serve them. The idea that one of the "peons" would sue them for doing something wrong is a difficult concept for them. They can't even understand that there are jobs in this world that don't have STD -- that's how removed from reality they are.

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:Do you have proof of where you fell?

This. Also, I thought people are responsible for removing snow, so it’s “walkable”, which it seems they did. Not sure residents are also responsible for black ice.

It so happens I do, bc we took a photos right before and I was with other people, so there were multiple witnesses.

You took photos right before you fell on a random patch of ice outside someone’s house? Interesting. How do you know this homeowner?

I do not know the homeowner. The photos (of the people I was with in front of the property) were for an unrelated purpose.

Why were you hanging out on their property?

I wasn't. I walked down a public sidewalk that passed their house. Turns out, they are responsible for the sidewalk.

But you took a picture that includes the ice before you fell on it?

No, ice was not in the picture, someone asked me how I knew which property it was.

If the ice isn’t in the picture how can it prove you were in front of one house vs another house months to years after the fact? Also you were with a group and took a picture, does that mean you were out at festivities that involved drinking?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Do you have proof of where you fell?

This. Also, I thought people are responsible for removing snow, so it’s “walkable”, which it seems they did. Not sure residents are also responsible for black ice.

No requirement in most (all ?) of Virginia for homeowner’s to remove either snow or ice. It is strongly encouraged, but not a legal requirement in any VA locality which I am familiar with. One reason why not is that elderly, disabled, or ill homeowners might not be physically able to do this.

[Anonymous]

You won't win unless you immediately knocked on the door and got the owner to admit some type of omission of fault and have proof there was ice. Or I can just fall down my stairs and sue the neighbors for ice .

[Anonymous]

This is such a frivolous lawsuit. If I were the owner of the house, I'd find a way to countersue you for wasting my time.

[Anonymous]

Wait, it's June. You waited how many months to ask this?

You're going to have a hell of a time proving this OP, unless you have pictures and witnesses and even then - good luck.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This is such a frivolous lawsuit. If I were the owner of the house, I'd find a way to countersue you for wasting my time.

Me too.

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:People don’t really have a lot of control over black ice developing. You say yourself it was otherwise cleared. It’s not like they were trying to be negligent. I am sorry you were injured so severely, and I think this is just a matter of accidents happen, not really a matter of a reason to go looking for someone to blame.

I really do not care about the blame. I would appreciate the financial compensation for my actual losses.

It is your fault that you fell. This is just typical American greed. Shame on you

It is quite frankly not my fault that I fell. I was wearing appropriate shoes for the weather, walking at a normal pace for a normal purpose on a sidewalk, in an area that appeared clear & safe but was not. There is nothing that I could have done differently not to fall. If there were no ice, or if it had been salted or marked, I would not have fallen.

I have no opinion on whether you should sue or not, but the above suggests that it will be a difficult case to make. The property owner cleared the sidewalk, and ice that was invisible to you formed. It seems like they took reasonable efforts, and if you couldn't see the ice, it doesn't seem reasonable that they needed to have seen it and acted to remove it. This isn't strict liability - you need to show they acted without due care, and as a potential juror, and based solely on what you have said so far, I don't think I would find in your favor.

[Anonymous]

OP I would not sue - example, my child fell off a neighbor's porch (improper railing) but I did not sue. However, if you genuinely need the money that you lost, then I would talk to a personal injury attorney, yes. If it goes through the homowner's insurance then, really that is what insurance is for.

[Anonymous]

I'm surprised by these answers. I live in NYC and whenever there is even a suggestion of snow or ice, the vast majority of homeowners blanket the sidewalks in front of their house with salt and ice melt, sometimes to a ridiculous degree, to ensure a situation just like this does not happen. In NY, people can and do sue for just such incidents, and everyone knows it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I do not like people like you.

+1000000 go ahead and sue and enjoy the Karma. The home owners may get dropped for this claim. At the very least their rates will go up. This does NOT sound like they were being negligent at all. Have a heart. People slip and fall.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You won't win unless you immediately knocked on the door and got the owner to admit some type of omission of fault and have proof there was ice. Or I can just fall down my stairs and sue the neighbors for ice .

This. It's not statute of limitations, but this claim is totally unprovable 6 mos.+ later. You have no (or little) proof that this injury happened where or when you claim it did, absent some sort of contemporaneous claim or an ambulance, police, etc. report. (And what does a photo demonstrate? You could have taken dozens of photos of houses that night (and apparently took this one at random).) You'll sound like a scammer at best.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm surprised by these answers. I live in NYC and whenever there is even a suggestion of snow or ice, the vast majority of homeowners blanket the sidewalks in front of their house with salt and ice melt, sometimes to a ridiculous degree, to ensure a situation just like this does not happen. In NY, people can and do sue for just such incidents, and everyone knows it.

I do this but I am not home 24/7 (and had to go in during COVID) so what happens if someone still falls or the ice melt dissipates? I also live in an area where many people walk on my sidewalk and yard and that pushes snow onto the sidewalk that can melt into ice. Sometimes people work 12-24 hour shifts and by the time they come home the ice melt is gone. I literally blanket my sidewalk with the stuff in the winter and get complaints from other pet owners, but this type of situation is why I do it!

I don't know, I think if you are walking in the snow and ice and the homeowner clears the sidewalk you need to be vigilant and should know you could slip.

[Anonymous]

This is why people should buy supplemental accident insurance. I have it through my workplace. Sh*t happens and you can't just sue every time, nor is that necessarily going to be fruitful due to lawyer fees - especially a case like this where honestly, if I were on the jury, I wouldn't find the homeowner negligent.

This is what we used when my spouse broke a limb biking where the bike slipped on a wet part of a bike trail.

PS, I also fell on black ice in front of my neighbor's house. I was sore, but ok. If I had been hurt enough to go to a hospital, it wouldn't have even occurred to me to sue! You KNOW if you go outside in snowy/icy weather to expect black ice and look for it and tread carefully. The only person I blamed was myself.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm surprised by these answers. I live in NYC and whenever there is even a suggestion of snow or ice, the vast majority of homeowners blanket the sidewalks in front of their house with salt and ice melt, sometimes to a ridiculous degree, to ensure a situation just like this does not happen. In NY, people can and do sue for just such incidents, and everyone knows it.

I do this but I am not home 24/7 (and had to go in during COVID) so what happens if someone still falls or the ice melt dissipates? I also live in an area where many people walk on my sidewalk and yard and that pushes snow onto the sidewalk that can melt into ice. Sometimes people work 12-24 hour shifts and by the time they come home the ice melt is gone. I literally blanket my sidewalk with the stuff in the winter and get complaints from other pet owners, but this type of situation is why I do it!

I don't know, I think if you are walking in the snow and ice and the homeowner clears the sidewalk you need to be vigilant and should know you could slip.

+1, it's not unlike driving in snowy/icy conditions where the roads have been treated, but black ice patches can occur regardless and cause accidents.