A patch of ice outside a store, snow covering an apartment walkway, or a broken stair can cause serious injuries in seconds. But suffering an injury on someone else’s property doesn’t automatically make the property owner responsible.
Colorado premises liability cases are primarily governed by the Colorado Premises Liability Act. The law determines when a “landowner” may be responsible for injuries caused by conditions, activities, or circumstances on property. Importantly, the duty owed to an injured person can depend on why that person was on the property in the first place.
What Is the Colorado Premises Liability Act?
The Colorado Premises Liability Act establishes the framework for claims against landowners when someone is injured on another person’s property because of a condition of the property or activities or circumstances there. Colorado courts have treated the Act as the exclusive remedy for qualifying premises liability claims against landowners.
The Act can apply to common hazards like dangerous stairs, slippery surfaces, poorly maintained walkways, and other unsafe property conditions.
Are Businesses Liable for Ice and Snow?
Potentially. Consider a customer who slips on an icy entrance while walking into a grocery store. As a customer, that person will typically fall within the Act’s definition of an invitee.
Under the current statute, an invitee generally may recover damages when a landowner unreasonably fails to exercise reasonable care to protect against a danger the landowner knew or should have known about.
That makes notice an important issue. Evidence showing that ice had been present for a substantial period, employees had previously encountered it, or recurring drainage problems repeatedly created ice in the same location could become relevant to whether the landowner knew or should have known about the danger.
What About Broken Stair and Other Maintenance Problems?
The same general principles can apply to structural hazards. A broken stair, loose handrail, damaged flooring, or poorly maintained walkway may support a premises liability claim when the statutory requirements are satisfied.
Evidence that can become particularly important includes:
- Photographs or video of the dangerous condition
- Surveillance footage of the accident
- Maintenance and inspection records
- Previous complaints about the hazard
- Witness statements
- Incident reports created after the injury
- Building-code evidence when applicable
Colorado case law recognizes that a building-code violation may be relevant
evidence when deciding whether an owner failed to exercise reasonable care, although a premises claim still must proceed within the statutory framework.
Invitee, Licensee, or Trespasser: Why Your Status Matters
Colorado’s Act separates people entering property into three categories, and each receives a different level of protection.
An invitee generally includes someone who enters property to transact business in which the parties are mutually interested or who enters in response to the landowner’s express or implied representation that the public is intended or expected to enter. Customers are a common example.
A licensee generally enters for their own interests with the landowner’s consent, while a trespasser enters without the landowner’s consent.
The differences matter. Invitees receive the broadest protection under the statute, while licenses face more restrictive requirements involving the landowner’s actual knowledge. Trespassers generally may recover only for damages willfully or deliberately caused by the landowner.
What If You Were Partially Responsible for the Fall?
Colorado’s comparative negligence rules apply to premises liability actions.
For example, a property owner might argue that an injured visitor was distracted, ignored a warning sign, or failed to exercise reasonable care. If the injured person is found partially responsible, that finding can impact the amount of compensation available and, at a sufficiently high level of fault, can prevent recovery.
Why Legal Guidance Matters
Colorado premises liability claims can involve complicated questions about the injured person’s legal status, the property owner’s knowledge, control of the premises, comparative negligence, and the precise condition that caused the accident.
Working with Arckey & Steele can help injured people investigate dangerous property conditions and determine whether the circumstances support a claim under Colorado’s Premises Liability Act.
