A New York City property owner has certain guidelines they must follow once the snowfall stops. They are required to make a path for pedestrians by removing snow and ice as well as clear snow and ice away from hydrants and bus stops.
Schedule for Snow Removal
If the snow stops between 7 AM and 5 PM, they have 4 hours to remove the snow and ice.
If it stops between 5 PM and 9 PM, it must be cleared in 14 hours.
If it stops between 9 PM and 7 AM, it has to go by 11 AM.
If this does not happen, the public can make a complaint and register it with the city of New York. The property owner could then receive a summons if they don’t comply. The public does have to wait for those times listed above before they can make a complaint about someone’s private property. They can also make a complaint any time about public property like schools and park paths. The city believes this schedule leaves an appropriate amount of time for the private property owner. However, as any New Yorker knows, some property owners may negligently forget these duties while others will blatantly ignore them. This will lead to many slip and fall injuries that could have been prevented.
Dangers of Uncleared Snow
Dangerous injuries can happen when one slips on ice and snow. The person may hit their head and even suffer a wrongful death. Bone fractures, torn ligaments, and herniated discs; that all require large amounts of recovery time and expensive medical care; will one of many expenses to be compensated for.
If a New York property owner doesn’t follow these rules and you have a slip and fall injury contact an attorney with legal expertise in slip and fall accidents. An experienced attorney will investigate whether previous complaints against that property owner were made and if he hadn’t complied with a summons that had been issued.
