Can Homeowners be Sued if You Slip on Their Sidewalk?

But if it’s slipped your mind, here’s the gist of the campaign: you can be held liable for any slips or falls on your property.

Sometimes it does slip your mind to protect yourself from litigation. You get caught in traffic during an ice storm and you don’t have time to get home and salt your walkway.

While you’re away, a courier slips on your front steps and throws out their back. Then they sue you for lost wages and damages.

Yes, home insurance can cover slip-and-fall lawsuits

Slip-and-fall lawsuits are not uncommon and they’re about to get even more frequent.

Over 42,000 Canadians are injured in slip-and-fall accidents every year. Most of these accidents are caused by unsafe conditions. Among those who are injured, seniors account for more than half of hospitalizations. 

The number of incidents resulting in legal action varies from year to year, but numbers could rise as a result of Ontario legislation — Bill 188, enacted January 2021 — that requires claimants to provide written notice within 60 days of an incident.

This extra pressure to act, coupled with step-by-step guides for filing lawsuits, gives anyone the details they need to hold you accountable. 

Therefore it’s important to look for home insurance online that covers litigation.

Home insurance covers you against lawsuits arising from slip-and-fall injuries.

Liability coverage applies to more than lawsuits

While legal costs do take up a majority of an average liability claim, your coverage will kick in to handle any medical bills. Common situations where medical bills could become a factor include but are not limited to:

• Accidents that happen in or near a swimming pool
• Injuries resulting from the consumption of alcohol
• Animal attacks

Coverage also applies in situations that happen away from your property, such as a shingle blowing off your roof and it striking your neighbour in the head.

How liability coverage works with Onlia home insurance

The first advantage of Onlia liability coverage is that it applies to incidents that happen in another country. For example, if you’re staying in an AirBnB and a guest you invite over slips on a wet floor and decides to file a lawsuit.

Not every provider of home insurance online offers this.

The second advantage to going online with Onlia is that you can choose how much liability coverage you want to carry and you can change it at any time.

Unlike car insurance where third-party liability is mandatory, home insurance has no such rule. Home insurance isn’t even mandatory, but it is recommended.

Onlia’s online setting of your liability coverage takes seconds and can be done with your phone. Since the average settlement of a slip and fall case is around $20,000, you should have at least ten times the coverage ($200,000).

The third advantage is Onlia’s way of handling your claim.

Despite the entire process being online, you’ll have someone to talk to the moment you need them. They’ll take you through the claims process and assist you in decision-making, so the impact of the lawsuit is little to none.

This is why it pays to find the right home insurance provider

We don’t often think about these rare moments, but when they do happen, the one potentially paying out of pocket could be you. But if you’re protected by liability insurance — and if you know for a fact that the money will be there for you when you need it — then you don’t have to worry.

And you never have to worry when you go online with Onlia.