Rylands v fletcher

• A person’s property is damaged by the escape of non naturally stored material onto adjoining land
• Damage must be reasonably foreseeable - transco

  Can’t claim for physical injury
• Claimant has to have legal interest in land to claim - transco
• Defendant must be the owner or occupier of land read v lyons
• D has to bring or accumulate the thing onto the land

  • If its naturally present theres no liability - giles v walker
  • No liability if it naturally accumulates on the land - ellison v mod
• a dangerous thing likely to do mischief

  • mischief has to be likely if the thing escapes - hale v jennings
  • Thing must escape. not fire - stannard v gore
  • Must be unusual use of land - stannard v gore
  • Fire will be a dangerous thing if deliberate,y or negligently started - stannard v gore
• Non natural use of land

  • Use of land must be unusual - transco
  • non natural use will change overtime
  • Bulk storsge of chemicals is classic non natural use of land - cambridge water
• Dangerous thing escapes

  • Musr escape from a place the occupier has control over - read v lyons
• causes reasonably foreseeable damage

  • Damage must be fireeseable and not too remote - cambridge water
• Defences:

  • Consent
  • Act of a stranger
  • Act of god
  • Statutory authority
  • Contributory negligence