The Ontario Legislature passed Bill 118, the Occupiers’ Liability Amendment Act,
As a Private Member’s Bill by Parry Sound-Muskoka MPP Norman Miller, Bill 118 requires anyone who wishes to sue for a fall on snow and ice to notify at least one of the property owner, tenant, property manager or snow removal company of their fall within 60 days of the incident. This will allow the defendants in any action to collect evidence and statements in a timely fashion to better defend themselves.
“Dave Finch of Wes Finch and Sons in Bracebridge told me that he was having difficulty getting liability insurance for their snow removal operations because they had a contract to plow the hospital parking lot,” explained Miller. “When I started looking into it, I learned this was a common problem for snow removal companies. After I introduced the Bill I heard from dozens of contractors from around the province who either couldn’t get insurance or whose insurance premiums had doubled or tripled in the past few years.”
The Standing Committee on Regulations and Private Bills considered Bill 118 in November and heard stories about skyrocketing insurance rates, the inability to get insurance and about dubious slip and fall claims made at the last minute. Stories like:
- Triple J contracting in London has been in business for 7 years, and employed more than 30 staff. This year, after their insurance rates rose from approximately $20,000 to an astounding $70,000 per year, they were forced to stop offering snow removal services. They have never faced a slip and fall claim.
- Perfect Property Maintenance Kings in the GTA have been forced by multiple insurance companies to refuse snow and ice maintenance service to gyms, places of worship and other busy community areas because they are considered more of a liability.
- Heather French of Humberview Services in Caledon told the committee “My husband and I are grain farmers in the town of Caledon, and in the winter we’ve operated a snow removal company for the past 50 years in our local hometown. Over the past two years, our insurance has gone from $15,000 to $112,000 this year due to one slip and fall.”
- Let’s Landscape Together in Burlington was served with a slip and fall lawsuit one day before the 2-year statute of limitations expired. The claimant said they fell in a parking lot maintained by Let’s Landscape Together on January 10, 2018, but waited until January 9, 2020 to file. The same claimant then filed a second claim for another accident in same spot 30 days later. Paperwork for the second claim was received February 5, 2020 for a fall on February 9, 2018. By this time, the company no longer had all the evidence to defend themselves, such as video footage and witness statements.
“We live in a northern climate with winter. We get snow and ice. Somehow people seem to have come to expect clear, dry pavement year around but that just isn’t possible. We as individuals need to take some personal responsibility for our own safety. We need to wear appropriate footwear and walk carefully in the winter. As a province we need to ensure that snow removal companies can remain viable and can provide affordable services in our communities,” said Miller.
Bill 118 originally proposed a 10-day notice period for slips and falls, the same as the timeframe for notifying a municipality about a slip and fall on a local road or sidewalk. However, as a result of discussions at committee and after hearing concerns from lawyers that some people wouldn’t be able to determine who to notify within 10 days, Miller introduced an amendment to set the notification period at 60 days. That amendment also allows that an injured party is only required to notify one of the parties involved, the property owner or manager, the tenant or the snow removal company, within the 60-day window and the notified party will be required to alert any other parties involved.
“I believe the Bill as amended achieves a good balance between the rights of an injured person to seek compensation and the rights of the property owner, tenant and their snow removal contractor to defend themselves from frivolous lawsuits,” said Miller. “I don’t expect this will completely solve the problem of high insurance costs for snow management contractors, but I believe it will reduce the risk to insurance companies and therefore lead to lower premiums. I will also be advocating for the government to look at other ways to reduce the cost of liability insurance for snow removal companies in Ontario.”