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[POLITICS] · Germany · 3 sources

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German court rules on liability for road ice caused by sprinkler systems

Higher Regional Court Frankfurt am Main State of Hesse traffic safety liability sprinkler system accident German road law

The Higher Regional Court (OLG) of Frankfurt am Main has upheld a ruling regarding the liability of property operators for road conditions. The case arose after a driver, traveling at speeds up to 99 km/h in temperatures of minus two degrees Celsius, lost control on an icy road and veered off a country lane.

The driver claimed that water from a nearby wood storage facility's sprinkler system had caused the ice. The heirs of the deceased driver sought at least 450,000 euros in damages from the State of Hesse, which operated the storage site, alleging a breach of duty to ensure public safety.

Both the District Court and the Higher Regional Court rejected the claim. The court emphasized that drivers must adjust their speed to weather and road conditions. The ruling indicates that operators are not automatically liable if the danger of ice was foreseeable or if the cause of the slipperiness cannot be definitively proven to be a breach of safety duties.

Entities

Frankfurt am Main · German Bar Association Traffic Law Working Group · Higher Regional Court of Frankfurt am Main · State of Hesse

Claims

What the coverage asserts, and how many sources carry each claim.

Sources

Glatteis-Unfall: Haftet der Betreiber einer Sprinkleranlage? [www.fehmarn24.de]
Glatteis-Unfall: Haftet der Betreiber einer Sprinkleranlage? [www.kurierverlag.de]
Glatteis-Unfall: Haftet der Betreiber einer Sprinkleranlage? [www.wz.de]