Restaurants, pubs, hotels, car parks and stairways all have an occupier who owes the people using them a duty of care. This page explains who is responsible where, and the lower duty owed to recreational users and trespassers.
The occupier: the person or business in control of the premises. The Occupiers' Liability Act 1995 defines an occupier by control over the state of the premises, not by ownership, and there can be more than one.
In a shopping centre, the management company may control the corridors and escalators while each tenant controls its own unit. "Premises" in the Act also covers vehicles, trains and other transport.
Customers, guests and anyone else there by invitation or permission are "visitors", owed the common duty of care.
Section 4 sets a lower duty for two groups. A recreational user is someone on land without paying, apart from a reasonable parking charge, to take part in a recreational activity, such as a walk across farmland or through a forest.
A trespasser is anyone who is neither a visitor nor a recreational user.
To both, the occupier owes a duty not to injure them intentionally and not to act with reckless disregard for them. Where a structure is provided mainly for recreational users, the occupier must take reasonable care to keep it safe.
Since 2023, an occupier is not liable to a person who entered to commit an offence, or committed one while there, unless a court decides otherwise in exceptional circumstances.
Report the fall to staff and ask for it to be recorded. Photograph the hazard and the lighting. Write to the occupier within one month, as section 8 of the Civil Liability and Courts Act 2004 requires.
A fall on stairs can cause injuries to the ankle, knee, back or head at once. Ask your doctor to record each one, and read how the Injuries Resolution Board works.
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Paul Kearney founded the practice and leads its personal injury work in Ireland. He is regulated by the Law Society of Ireland. Read Paul's profile.
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A visitor is there by invitation or permission, such as a customer in a pub or a guest in a hotel, and is owed the common duty of care.
A recreational user is on land without charge for a leisure activity, such as a walk on farmland, and is owed the lower duty in section 4 of the Act.
Only in narrow cases. The occupier must not injure a trespasser intentionally or act with reckless disregard for them.
In deciding that, a court looks at whether the occupier knew of the danger, the cost of removing it, any warnings given and the person's own conduct.
Not on its own. A notice can restrict an occupier's duty to visitors only if it is reasonable and the occupier took reasonable steps to bring it to visitors' attention, and it can never allow intentional injury or reckless disregard.
Since 2023, section 5A also says an occupier is not liable for risks a visitor understood and willingly accepted.
The occupier of the building. Handrails, lighting, the condition of the treads and how visible the step edges are all fall within its control. Photograph the stairs from the top and the bottom, and note any bulb that was out.
Yes, if the car park was not kept in a reasonably safe condition. A car park run by a business or a private operator is its premises under the Occupiers' Liability Act.
Where the car park forms part of a public road, the rules on road authorities apply instead; see pavement and public pathway falls.
It does not stop a claim, but the court looks at the care you took for your own safety. If drink played a part, compensation can be reduced in proportion under section 34 of the Civil Liability Act 1961.
The Act looks at who controls the state of the premises.
The business running a hotel or restaurant is usually the occupier of the areas it manages, while the owner may still be responsible for parts it kept control of, such as a shared entrance or an outside stairway.
Two years from the date of the fall, or from the date you knew about the injury if later, under the Statute of Limitations (Amendment) Act 1991. Write to the restaurant, hotel or other occupier within one month.
No. There are no upfront fees. Before you go ahead, we give you clear written terms explaining how legal costs work, as section 150 of the Legal Services Regulation Act 2015 requires. Read No Win No Fee explained.
Regulated by the Law Society of Ireland
Kearney Law handles only personal injury and clinical negligence claims.
We act for clients across Ireland, including Dublin, Cork, Galway, Limerick, Waterford and Letterkenny. See all the areas we cover.
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