Occupiers liability - (1984)

Question 1

Describe part 1 of the OLA 1984.

Answer 1

Under s1 (1) (a), O owes a DOC to T for injury on by reason of the state of the premises or things done/omitted to be on them.
(PERSONAL INJURY ONLY).

P and O are the same as under the OLA 1957. (P = Defined in s1 (3) as any ‘fixed or moveable structure’. O = Anyone in actual control of the land (Wheat v Lacon)).

T is someone who does not have permission to be on the premises.

Question 2

PART 1) Describe s1(3) and when O will owe a DOC:

Answer 2

Under s1(3), O will owe a DOC if:
a) He is aware of the danger or has reasonable grounds to believe it exists (Rhind).
b) He is aware or has reasonable grounds to believe that the other could come into the vicinity of the danger.
c) He will not owe a DOC to people who he does not expect to enter the premises (Higgs).
d) The risk is one against which he may be expected to offer the other some protection from.

Question 3

Describe the second part:

Answer 3

O must breach that duty of care and it must cause the injury.
- Under s1 (4), O must take ‘reasonable care’ to ‘see that C does not suffer injury on the premises by reason of the danger’.

Question 4

PART 2) What does the O not have to do?

Answer 4

• Warn adult trespassers of any obvious dangers (Ratcliffe).
• Warn adult trespassers of obvious risks if C enters at an unforeseeable time of the year (Donoghue).
• Spend lots of money making the P safe from obvious dangers (Tomlinson).
• The same applies to child C’s (Baldaccino).

Question 5

Describe part 3 (REMEDIES/DEFENCES):

Answer 5

• Damages
• Contributory negligence (reduction in damages)
• Consent
• Warning notices

Question 6

Describe the remedy of warning notices:

Answer 6

Under s1 (5), a duty can be discharged in ‘appropriate circumstances’ where an O has taken R steps to provide a warning.

• For children, it will depend on their age and understanding (Westwood v Post Office).