Sidewalk Defects And Municipal Liability: In Most States, Size Matters

Insurance claim files are overflowing with losses involving individuals injured when they trip and fall over cracked, broken, or uneven municipal sidewalks.

In many cases, the injury is a direct result of a municipality failing to institute and/or conscientiously follow its own policies regarding inspection, maintenance, and repair of miles of sidewalks. Understanding the potential liability of the municipality and how and when a subrogated insurance company can subrogate against it when such injuries occur is essential to any successful subrogation program.

It is equally important for liability claims professionals to be able to know when to settle and when to draw a line in the sand. The reality is, however, that learning and applying the complexity of a wide variety of laws and ordinances across thousands of municipalities nationwide is easier said than done.