Selling a house in Ontario in winter: if someone slips and gets hurt at the door during a showing, who's responsible?
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The seller who lives there, or the owner if it's vacant. Ontario law says the occupier must keep it reasonably safe. Home liability coverage usually pays.
Someone hurt on snow or ice generally has to serve written notice within 60 days. Got one? Send it to your lawyer and insurer right away.
- 01Check the forecast, book clearing
- 02Clear driveway, steps and entrance
- 03Salt or grit, check under the mat
- 04Turn on the porch light
- 05Lockbox on a cleared path
- 06Knock down icicles
- 01Help first, call an ambulance if needed
- 02Take photos, note the time and weather
- 03Don't promise to pay or admit fault
Snow companies were booked solid, so Yifei cleared and salted three listings himself. Another seller's spotless entrance was the one of five a buyer's agent praised.
For small losses Yifei usually says don't claim; his line is about $5,000. Someone hurt at your door? Report it to your insurer right away.
Tell Yifei if the house is owner-occupied, vacant or tenanted, and how it's insured. He'll tell you straight what to do.
Ask YifeiUsually the first person on the hook is whoever controls the property: the seller who lives there, or the owner if it's vacant. Ontario law requires the occupier to keep the property reasonably safe, so if the walkway wasn't shovelled or salted and someone falls, the seller may be responsible, and the claim usually goes to the liability coverage on their home insurance. When you list in winter, clearing and salting the driveway, steps and entrance before every showing is your job.
Why it starts with the seller
Ontario has a law for exactly this, the Occupiers' Liability Act. In plain terms, whoever actually controls a place has to take reasonable care that people who come onto it don't get hurt. Agents and buyers at a showing are people the seller has invited in.
Who pays for a specific fall, and how much, depends on whether the area was cleared and salted, when the snow fell and whether the person who fell was careless. That's for a lawyer and the insurance company to sort out based on the facts.
The Act also has a rule just for snow and ice: someone injured on snow or ice generally has to serve written notice, stating the date, time and location, on the occupier or the snow removal contractor within 60 days before they can sue. If you receive one, send it to your lawyer and insurer right away, and pass a copy to your snow contractor as the Act requires. Whether an exception applies, or whether a late claim can still go ahead, is a question for a lawyer.
Which situation are you in
Yifei has heard that insurers are reluctant to cover snow removal businesses these days. Before you hire one, ask whether they carry liability insurance.
Before every winter showing
- Check the forecast the night before and book snow clearing if it's coming.
- An hour or two before the showing, clear the driveway, walkway, steps and entrance.
- Put down salt or grit, and check under the doormat.
- Turn on the porch light. It's dark by 4 or 5 p.m.
- Put an absorbent mat and a shoe rack inside the door so the spot where people take off their boots doesn't ice up.
- Put the lockbox somewhere on a cleared path, not in the snow.
- Knock down icicles hanging over the door.
If someone does fall: take care of the person first and call an ambulance if needed. Photograph the entrance as it was, note the time and the weather, and tell your agent and your insurer that day. Don't promise to pay or admit fault in a text. Let the insurer handle it.
What Yifei has seen
After one heavy snowfall, snow removal companies were fully booked, so Yifei shovelled and salted three of his listings himself in one day to keep the showings going. For his own listings he uses a walk-behind snowblower, not a truck.
During another snowstorm, one seller cleared the entrance spotless. The buyer's agent saw five houses that day and singled out this one as the best showing. A clean entrance changes a buyer's first impression before they're even inside.
On insurance, Yifei's experience is that deductibles vary: some are $500, some $1,000, and the one on his own home is 2% of the coverage. For small losses he usually tells clients not to claim; his line is about $5,000. But someone getting hurt at your door isn't a small loss. Report it to your insurer right away.
Ask about your own situation
Whether the house is owner-occupied, vacant or tenanted, and how it's insured, decide how to handle winter showings. Tell me about your situation and I'll tell you straight what to do (Yifei, RE/MAX, efay.ai).
Frequently asked questions
Are the agents or brokerages responsible?
Agents should warn visitors to watch their step. But clearing the snow is generally up to whoever controls the property. If something happens, a lawyer can sort out how responsibility is shared.
Who clears the city sidewalk in front of the house?
It depends on your city. In Toronto, once snowfall reaches 2 cm the City clears all public sidewalks; under 2 cm, owners must clear the sidewalk next to their property within 12 hours after the snow stops, and their own driveway, steps and walkways within 24 hours. Other cities have different rules, so check your municipality's website. Wherever you are, clear your own entrance before every showing.
Sources: - Occupiers' Liability Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. O.2 (Ontario e-Laws): https://www.ontario.ca/laws/statute/90o02 - City of Toronto, Sidewalk Clearing: https://www.toronto.ca/services-payments/streets-parking-transportation/road-maintenance/winter-maintenance/sidewalk-clearing/