Guidance on Clearing Snow and Ice

Worcestershire County Council is continuing to encourage householders to be ‘good neighbours’ and help keep highways safe this winter.

With the experience of recent winters very much in mind and the possible approach of severe weather once again, the Council is keen for residents to help keep highways clear for all users by clearing snow and ice from public footways or pavements fronting their properties.

The Council recognises that popular concern over a ‘compensation culture’ and possible legal liability has discouraged a lot of householders from clearing snow and ice from footways in the past.

In fact, we believe that case-law does not justify significant cause for concern and shouldn’t put people off, provided they take reasonable care.

Any householder who takes reasonable care when clearing a footway and ensures that its condition does not create a greater hazard than before is highly unlikely therefore to be faced with a successful claim from pedestrians who may suffer injury or loss as a result of that clearance.

Reasonable care would include following the government advice on how to clear footways safely shown below, although we are happy for salt in grit bins to be used to clear pavements forming part of the highway.

Government advice from https://www.gov.uk/clear-snow-road-path-cycleway supported by the County Council: Clear snow from a road, path or cycleway You can clear snow and ice from pavements yourself. It’s unlikely that you’ll be sued or held responsible if someone is injured on a path or pavement if you’ve cleared it carefully.

How to clear snow and ice

When you clear snow and ice:

 do it early in the day – it’s easier to move fresh, loose snow

 don’t use water – it might refreeze and turn to black ice

 use salt if possible – it will melt the ice or snow and stop it from refreezing overnight (but don’t use the salt from salting bins as this is used to keep roads clear)

 you can use ash and sand if you don’t have enough salt – it will provide grip underfoot

 pay extra attention when clearing steps and steep pathways – using more salt may help

PC advice re Ice and Snow policy 2017