Occupiers Liability

Occupiers Liability is an area of Delict that originates from Common, Statutory, and in parts even Roman law.

Common Law
Under the common law, whether or not an occupier owed another any duty of care depended on the persuers "status" at the time of the loss - trespassers, even in the case of a child, were not owed any duty of care (Dumbreck v Addy).

Who is the Occupier
The Occupiers Liability Scotland Act 1960 places a liability for a duty of care to the occupier, or person who has "physical control" of the property.

For rented properties, the duty however would transfer to the landlord if the landlord was responsible for repairs and maintenence.

This still can leave questions as to who an "occupier" is. A courier visiting a property with no day-to-day occupier is still "occupied" by its owner (Dawson v Page), a property that had been sold but with full possession not yet complete was still "occupied" by its former owner, even though the property was derelict.