Slip-and-fall, liability & insurance: snow removal questions

Question 1

What should I do if someone slips and falls on ice at my property?

Accepted Answer

Help the person first, then document the conditions right away: photos of the spot, the time, the weather, and what had been plowed or salted and when. Report it to your insurer and ask your snow contractor for the service log for that storm. Photos taken the same hour are worth more than any description written later. Include the surrounding area, the lighting and any signage. The contractor's log shows when crews were on site, which areas were serviced and what was applied. That record is the core of the defense, which is why we send a service report after every event. Do not speculate about fault in writing. Let your insurer and attorney handle the claim. This is general guidance, not legal advice.

Question 2

How long should I keep snow removal records?

Accepted Answer

Keep them at least two years, since that is New Jersey's general deadline for filing a personal injury lawsuit, and longer if your insurer or attorney advises it. Many owners keep every season's logs for several years because they cost nothing to store. The two-year period comes from N.J.S.A. 2A:14-2. Some claims have different timing, for example when the injured person is a minor, which is the main reason to keep records longer. Keep the contractor's service reports, your own incident notes, photos, and the contract showing the scope and trigger depths that were in force.

Question 3

What should a snow contractor's certificate of insurance show?

Accepted Answer

It should show active general liability, commercial auto and workers' compensation coverage, with policy dates that cover the whole winter, and your property or company named on it. Ask whether snow and ice work is covered, because some general liability policies exclude it. Ask to be named as an additional insured where your contract calls for it, and check that the certificate lists the right entity name. Property management companies often need the owner entity listed as well. Get the certificate before the season starts, not after the first storm. We provide certificates with your property listed before the season.

Question 4

Is an HOA liable for a fall on the public sidewalk outside the community?

Accepted Answer

Generally not, under Luchejko v. City of Hoboken, 207 N.J. 191 (2011), which held a residential condominium association not liable for a fall on its abutting public sidewalk. The association is still responsible for the walks, stairs and roads it owns inside the community. The town ordinance can still require the sidewalk to be cleared, with a deadline and a fine, even where a court would not find the association liable for a fall. Check the association's own documents too. Bylaws and master deeds often say who clears what, and boards are held to them. This is general information, not legal advice.

Question 5

What is New Jersey's ongoing storm rule?

Accepted Answer

It is the rule that a commercial property owner in New Jersey has no legal duty to clear snow or ice until a reasonable time after the precipitation stops. The New Jersey Supreme Court adopted it in 2021 in Pareja v. Princeton International Properties. There are two exceptions. A duty can arise during a storm if the owner's own conduct made the hazard worse than the storm itself did, or if a dangerous condition was already there before the storm started, such as old ice from an earlier event or a drain that refreezes in the same spot every time. The pre-existing hazard exception is the one that matters day to day. It is why clearing the last storm's ice before the next one, fixing drainage that refreezes, and walking the property after an event are worth doing and worth recording. The rule is about when a legal duty begins, not about how a property should be run. Treating before and during a storm still keeps a site open and makes the cleanup faster. This is general information, not legal advice.

Question 6

Does salting during a storm create liability in New Jersey?

Accepted Answer

Not by itself. In Gallardo v. Walmart, decided July 30, 2026, the New Jersey Supreme Court held that a contractor salting during an ongoing storm did not create the unusual circumstances that would make the owner liable before the storm ended. Before Gallardo, injured people often argued that mid-storm salting made a surface more dangerous and so triggered the first exception to the ongoing storm rule. The decision, by a 4-3 vote, narrows that argument: ordinary storm work is not, alone, the problem. It does not remove the second exception. A hazard that existed before the storm, like old ice left from a previous event, can still create a duty during the storm. This is general information, not legal advice.

Question 7

Does hiring a snow contractor move the liability off the property owner?

Accepted Answer

Not entirely. Hiring a professional contractor is how an owner meets its duty in practice, and the contract can require the contractor to carry insurance and cover claims caused by its own negligence, but an injured person can still sue the owner. New Jersey enforces indemnity clauses by their exact wording. In Azurak v. Corporate Property Investors (2003), the New Jersey Supreme Court held that a contract shifts responsibility for the owner's own negligence to a contractor only if it says so unequivocally. In practice, the protection comes from three things lining up: a contract that says who does what, a certificate of insurance naming every entity that could be sued, and service records showing the work was done. This is general information, not legal advice.

Question 8

Does the ADA require clearing snow from accessible parking spaces?

Accepted Answer

Yes, in effect. The ADA rule at 28 CFR 36.211 requires businesses open to the public to keep accessible features, including accessible parking spaces, access aisles, curb ramps and the route to the entrance, in operable working condition. The rule allows isolated or temporary interruptions for maintenance or repairs. Piling plowed snow into accessible spaces or leaving the accessible route blocked after the storm is not that. Name accessible spaces, aisles and ramps as their own item in the snow contract, and mark them on the site plan as places snow is never piled. Public entities have a parallel obligation under Title II. This is general information, not legal advice.

Question 9

Does OSHA require employers to clear snow and ice?

Accepted Answer

For workplaces, yes. OSHA's walking-working surfaces standard, 29 CFR 1910.22, requires employers to keep walking-working surfaces free of hazards including snow and ice, inspect them, and correct hazards before employees use the surface again. At a warehouse, plant or office campus that covers more than the customer lot: loading docks, yard walkways, employee entrances and the path from the employee lot to the door. Shift changes matter more than opening hours at an industrial site, so write the clear-by time in the contract around the shifts. This is general information, not legal advice.

Slip-and-fall, liability & insurance

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