Retail Store and Commercial Property Liability Laws in New Jersey

Winter weather events can create dangerous conditions inside and outside retail stores, shopping centers, and other commercial properties throughout New Jersey. Left untreated, snow-covered walkways, icy parking lots, wet entry floors, and untreated black ice can all lead to serious accidents and injuries.

When it comes to safety, the law acknowledges that commercial property owners are in the best position to ensure that their stores and businesses are in a reasonably safe condition for the people who come onto their property. Not only are they the professionals who have voluntarily undertaken this responsibility, but they also derive a financial benefit from their customers and tenants.

As a result, New Jersey law requires that commercial property owners take reasonable steps to address snow and ice, monitor hazardous conditions, and protect customers from foreseeable harm. When weather-related accidents occur, victims oftentimes sustain serious and debilitating injuries, lose wages, and incur unexpected medical bills that can cause financial strain to both them and their families.

If you were injured at a commercial business or property during the winter, you may be entitled to compensation. However, you must prove liability, which requires showing that the business failed to meet their legal duties and responsibilities.

Our experienced team of personal injury lawyers at Levinson Axelrod can support you in the aftermath of an accident. We will investigate your accident, gather evidence, counter common defenses, and pursue the full extent of the compensation that you deserve.

Winter Accident in a New Jersey Store

Winter weather conditions increase the risk of slip and fall accidents inside New Jersey stores. This causes accidents at retail stores, shopping centers, restaurants, and other commercial properties across New Jersey.

Snow, ice, slush, and freezing temperatures can create hazardous conditions both inside and outside commercial businesses, especially when property owners fail to take proper preventive measures.

When commercial properties are managed properly, hazardous conditions are not permitted to unnecessarily develop and remain. Winter is not an excuse, and there is no reason why icy conditions should be allowed to develop and exist.

Property owners can pre-salt in order to prevent ice from forming in the first place. Regular inspections will reveal developing conditions before they become hazardous, which can be treated proactively with regular salting, shoveling, and plowing.

Accidents occur when property owners fail to take reasonable steps to maintain their property.

Highest Duty of Care Owed by Commercial Property Owners

The laws of New Jersey impose different levels of responsibility upon property owners based upon the nature of their property and the reason why the injured person had come onto their property.

The highest duty of care is owed by a commercial property owner to a customer who has come onto the property for the financial benefit of the owner.

Commercial property owners have a legal responsibility to maintain their property in a reasonably safe condition.

Commercial and retail store liability arises when owners fail to address:

• Icy walkways
• Snow-covered parking lots
• Wet interior floors caused by tracked-in moisture

Winter weather occurs every year in the northeast, and businesses are expected to anticipate these conditions and be prepared to address them. They cannot simply sit back and blame the weather.

Parking Lot and Walkway Maintenance Standards

Parking lots, sidewalks, ramps, and entrances are among the most common locations for winter slip and fall accidents.

Shopping center or mall parking lot falls on ice often involve:

• Failure to plow accumulated snow and ice within a reasonable time after a storm
• Failing to apply salt or ice melt to prevent icy surfaces from developing or remaining
• Failing to properly monitor the property for melting and refreezing conditions, especially overnight or during temperature fluctuations
• Negligently piling snow in areas where it will unnecessarily impede pedestrian traffic or create melting and refreezing conditions

Failure to maintain these areas can expose customers to black ice and other hidden hazards, thereby creating strong grounds for liability when injuries occur.

Entrance Mats and Warning Sign Requirements

One of the most overlooked winter hazards is the transition zone, the area located just inside a store’s entrance.

Rain, melting snow, and slush tracked in by customers frequently causes grocery store floors to become slippery and accidents to occur. Wet shopping carts can likewise track water into stores.

New Jersey businesses are expected to address this risk by:

• Placing adequate absorbent mats at entrances
• Ensuring that mats remain flat and secured
• Regularly replacing saturated mats
• Posting visible “wet floor” warning signs when conditions warrant

It is equally important that the floor mats placed at entrances be the correct type of mat and not exacerbate the problem by moving or bunching up.

The Transition Zone Problem

The transition zone problem is central to many winter cases. Courts recognize that businesses should anticipate snow and ice being tracked indoors.

Ignoring interior hazards can be just as negligent as failing to clear ice outside.

Proving Liability in Winter Slip and Fall Cases

To succeed in a commercial slip and fall claim, an injured person must demonstrate the following:

• An unreasonably dangerous condition existed
• The business created the condition, knew of the condition, or should have known about it through due diligence
• Reasonable steps were available that would have corrected the condition
• The condition was a substantial contributing factor in causing the accident

Retail Store Liability in New Jersey

In New Jersey, retail stores cannot avoid responsibility for winter slip and fall accidents simply by blaming the snow, ice, or bad weather.

Grocery stores, malls, big box retailers, and restaurants all invite customers onto their premises for business purposes and therefore owe them a heightened duty of care.

While winter storms are natural events, hazardous conditions that remain after a storm ends or develop due to melting and refreezing conditions are often foreseeable and preventable.

Retailers must therefore:

• Prevent ice formation when possible
• Clear snow and ice
• Treat walkways and parking lots
• Monitor interior floors
• Warn customers of known dangers

Failure to act reasonably can expose commercial businesses to liability when a customer is injured.

Our premises liability lawyers can often prove fault using the following types of evidence.

Evidence Used in Winter Slip and Fall Cases

Photographs and Video Recordings

Our premises liability lawyers can use photographs and surveillance videos to show icy sidewalks, untreated parking lots, wet entrance floors, or missing warning signs. Visual evidence helps establish the presence of a dangerous condition.

Weather and Temperature Reports

Official snowfall and temperature data, as well as meteorologists’ reports, can help document a winter storm's timeline and show when snow or ice should have been cleared.

Maintenance and Cleaning Logs

Snow removal logs, salting records, and work orders can reveal lapses in winter maintenance.

Witness Statements

Statements from pedestrians, tenants, or employees can establish that unsafe winter conditions were allowed to persist for extended periods.

Contact a New Jersey Winter Slip and Fall Attorney

You may be entitled to financial compensation if you sustained an injury after falling at a commercial business or property due to someone else’s negligence.

Winter is not an excuse.

Did you fall at a commercial business this winter?

Levinson Axelrod holds negligent property owners accountable.

Call 1-800-XXX-XXXX.