summary of the 57 and 84 OLA acts

• Occupiers Liability Act 1957 AO1 summary (intro and definitions):

  • deals with lawful visitors
  • occupier - 'anyone in possession or control of the land' (Wheat v Lacon)
  • premises - 'a person occupying or having control over any fixed or moveable structure including any vessel, vehicle or aircraft' s.1(3)(a), includes ladders (Wheeler v Copas)
• Occupiers Liability Act 1957 AO1 summary (common duty):

  • common duty of care - all lawful visitors s.2(1), 4 types s.1(2); invitee s.1(2), licensee s.1(2), contractual permission s.5(1), statutory rights of entry s.2(6).
  • scope of duty - reasonable care 'to see that the visitor will be reasonably safe in using the premises for the purposes for which he is invited' s.2(2), (Laverton v Kiapasha Supreme Takeaway)
  • not expected to protect against 'trips, slips and falls' (Dean and Chapter of Rochester Cathedral v Debell)
• Occupier's Liability Act 1957 AO1 summary (optional issues pt. 1):

  • Children - higher and special duty of care s.2(3)(a), subjective s.2(3) (Moloney v Lambeth), reasonably safe (Perry v Butlins Holiday World). Allurements - tempt, entice, attract (Taylor v Glasgow Corporation), Supervision - young children (Phipps v Rochester Corporation), Foreseeable - broad view (Jolley v Sutton LBC)
• Occupier's Liability Act 1957 AO1 summary (optional issues pt.2):

  • Tradespeople - expected to protect against any risks, s.2(3)(b), not for risks the tradesperson should know about (Roles v Nathan)
  • Independent Contractors - 3 tests under s.2(4)(b), 1. reasonable to give work to IC (Haseldine v Daw & Son Ltd), 2. Contractor must be competent (Bottomeley v Todmorden), 3. check work is done properly (Woodward v Mayor of Hastings)
• Occupier's Liability Act 1957 AO1 summary (defences pt.1):

  • Contributory Negligence - Law Reform (Contributor Negligence) Act 1945, reduce by a percentage (Sawyer v Harlow Urban District Council)
  • Volenti Non Fit Injuria - s.2(5), 'willingly accepted a risk' (White Lion Hotel v James)
• Occupier's Liability Act 1957 AO1 summary (defences pt.2):

  • Warning Signs - s.2(4)(a), capable of making visitors reasonably safe, must give enough information (Roles v Nathan), not a general warning (Roe v Mars), no duty against obvious risks (Darby v National Trust)
  • Exclusion Notice - s.2(1), 'exclude, restrict or modify his duty', s.65 Consumer Rights Act 2015 - cannot exclude liability for death or serious injury.
• Occupier's Liability Act 1984 AO1 summary (intro & definitions):

  • deals with trespassers
  • occupier - 'anyone in possession or control of the land' (Wheat v Lacon)
  • premises - 'a person occupying or having control over any fixed or moveable structure includes any vessel, vehicle or aircraft, s.1(3)(a), includes ladders (Wheeler v Copas)
• Occupier's Liability Act 1984 AO1 summary (common duty):

  • common duty of care, all lawful visitors s.2(1), 4 types s.1(2), invitee s.1(2), licensee s.1(2), contractual permission s.5(1), statutory rights of entry s.2(6)
• Occupier's Liability Act 1984 AO1 summary (trespasser):

  • ' someone who goes on land without any sort of permission and whose presence is unknown to the occupier, or if known, objected to' (Addie v Dumbreck)
  • can go beyond permission (The Calgarth)
• Occupier's Liability Act 1984 AO1 summary (duty of care overview):

  • s.1(1)(a), 'injuries suffered by reason of any danger due to the state of the premises' (BRB v Herrington)
  • s.1(8) - claims for personal injury only, not damage
• Occupier's Liability Act 1984 AO1 summary (duty of care steps):

  • s.1(3)(a) - aware of danger/reasonable grounds to believe it exists (Rhind v Astbury Water Park)
  • s.1(3)(b) - knows/reasonable grounds to believe that the other is in the vicinity of danger (Donoghue v Folkestone Properties)
  • s.1(3)(c) - reasonable expected to offer some protection
  • obvious dangers - no duty (Tomlinson v Congleton BC)
  • size of risk - practical precautions (Tomlinson v Congleton BC)
• Occupier's Liability Act 1984 AO1 summary (scope of duty):

  • s.1(4) - reasonable to all the circumstances to make sure that the trespasser doesn't suffer injury on the premise because of the danger concerned.
• Occupier's Liability Act 1984 AO1 summary (standard of care):

  • objective (Ratcliffe v McConnell)
  • what is required depends on the circumstances of each case
• Occupier's Liability Act 1984 AO1 summary (factors):

  • the courts will consider:
  • degree of danger and age - same rules apply for children (Keown v Coventry Healthcare NHS Trust), obvious risk (Baldaccino v West Wittering)
  • foolhardy pursuits - expect trespasser not to pursure foolhardy activities (Donoghue v Folkstone Properties)
  • no duty to 'unexpected trespassers' - s.1(5) if occupier does not know the risk of trespasser, cannot guard against it (Higgs v Foster)
  • nature of property - commercial or domestic (Rhind v Astbury Water Park)
• Occupier's Liability Act 1984 AO1 summary (defences):

  • Contributory Negligence - Law Reform (Contributor Negligence) Act 1945, reduced by a percentage
  • Volenti Non Fit Injuria - s.1(6) 'willingly accepted a risk' (Ratcliffe v McConnell)
  • Warning Signs - s.1(5), capable of making the trespasser reasonable safe, given enough information (Roles v Nathan), general warning is not enough (Roe v Mars), no duty against obvious risk (Darby v National Trust)