Legal Question in Insurance Law in Pennsylvania

auto accident

Dear lawyer,

There is a water main break that hasnt been fixed in over a week. The water leak causes ice and slush buildup on my street. My car was just involved in a hit and run, but I believe the root cause of it was the slippery conditions of the road. Is the city at fault, or am I screwed?


Asked on 2/19/07, 6:41 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys

John Jackson Law Office of John A. Jackson, P.C.

Re: auto accident

If you were to pursue the city you would have a tough time make a case. First you would have to show that the city had a duty to keep the streets free of snow. This you may be able to show. Then you would have to establish that the city acted unreasonably under the circumstances. You would have a very difficult time proving that. The city likely have emergency routes that it clears first and then works its way down to the side streets and depending on the amount of snow that fell and other conditions you would have to show that they city was negligent. This would be had to do.

The city would also argue that an intervening act happened that was the proximate cause of your damage. They would argue that the driver of the car that hit yours was driving unsafely for the conditions of the road.

So the bottom line is that you are screwed. However, if you wanted to spend the money I am sure that there is an attorney out there that will take it. I would be one of them.

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Answered on 2/19/07, 9:02 pm


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