# What if I slipped and fell at a business? Canonical: https://californiapersonalinjurylaws.com/guides/slip-and-fall/ Reviewed by Andrew (Andy) R. Gillin; publisher reported approval on 2026-11-04. Original review date was not supplied. ## Short answer A store may be at fault if it fails to use reasonable care to keep the site safe. A fall alone does not prove the store must pay. ## Hypothetical example A spill sits in an aisle. Staff have enough time that they should have found it, but no one cleans it up. A shopper falls. ## How the rule works The question is usually whether the party in control used reasonable care. Proof may concern cleaning, inspections, warnings, or repairs. Notice of the hazard can be a key issue. ## What can change the answer How the hazard got there matters. So does how long it was there. Warnings, inspections, and the shopper’s own care may change the answer. ## A useful next step Take photos if safe. Note who saw the fall. Report the facts without guessing. ## Must I prove the exact time a spill reached the floor? The exact time may be unknown. Inspection records and other facts may help show the spill was there long enough to be found. That does not prove every part of the claim. ## Court decisions behind this answer ### Rowland v. Christian (1968) 69 Cal.2d 108, p. 119. The court applied reasonable-care rules to unsafe property. A visitor’s label alone did not decide the owner’s duty. Limit: The case does not make an owner pay for every fall. Statutes and later exceptions still need review. Source: https://law.justia.com/cases/california/supreme-court/2d/69/108.html ### Ortega v. Kmart Corp. (2001) 26 Cal.4th 1200, pp. 1203, 1210–1213. A lack of reasonable inspections may help show that a store should have found a spill. Limit: This permits an inference from the proof. It does not make the store liable just because someone fell. Source: https://law.justia.com/cases/california/supreme-court/4th/26/1200.html ## Sources - [California Civil Code § 1714 — Responsibility for harm](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=CIV§ionNum=1714.) - [CACI No. 1000 — Premises liability (2026 edition)](https://courts.ca.gov/system/files/file/judicial_council_of_california_civil_jury_instructions_2026.pdf) - [Rowland v. Christian (1968) 69 Cal.2d 108](https://law.justia.com/cases/california/supreme-court/2d/69/108.html) - [Ortega v. Kmart Corp. (2001) 26 Cal.4th 1200](https://law.justia.com/cases/california/supreme-court/4th/26/1200.html) General information, not legal advice.