Indermaur v Dames
Rule established
An occupier owes a duty to an invitee to use reasonable care to prevent damage from unusual dangers which the occupier knows or ought to know about.
Facts
- The plaintiff, a gas fitter, was lawfully on the defendant's premises to do work (an invitee)
- He fell through an unfenced opening in the floor and was injured
- The defendant knew of the opening but gave no warning
Issue
- What duty does an occupier of premises owe to a person who enters the premises on business (an invitee)?
Held
- An occupier is bound to use reasonable care to prevent damage to an invitee from unusual dangers which the occupier knows or ought to know about
- The invitee, using reasonable care on their part, is entitled to expect that the premises are reasonably safe for the purpose for which they were invited
Ratio Decidendi
The occupier's duty to an invitee: use reasonable care that the premises are reasonably safe, and warn of unusual dangers that the occupier knows or ought to know about and which the invitee does not know about.
How to use it in an exam
- Part A: Foundational authority for occupier's duty to invitees; the "unusual danger" requirement.
- Part B: Pair with British Railways Board v Herrington (1972) to show the evolution toward a duty even to trespassers (the "common humanity" test).
- Key line: "An occupier must use reasonable care to prevent damage to invitees from unusual dangers which the occupier knows or ought to know about."
Source
Source: (1866) LR 1 CP 274
This is an educational summary, not the judgment itself. Cite the reported version in professional or academic work.