WPI 120.06.01 Duty of Business Proprietor to Customer—Activities or Condition of Premises

When the case involves a condition of the premises not created by the owner or occupier, use WPI 120.07 (Liability to Business or Public Invitee—Condition of Premises—Condition Not Caused by the Owner or Occupier) with this instruction.

In the typical commercial or business situation, this instruction will usually be more appropriate than WPI 120.06 (General Duty to Business or Public Invitee—Activities or Condition of Premises). The status of the person is usually not the issue. In most cases an instruction is needed only to define the scope of the duty to a customer. There is no need to define “business invitee” and then to set forth the duty to a “business invitee.” If there is an issue as to status, it will usually be a question of whether the person came upon the premises in response to an express or implied invitation and in connection with the business or was using a portion of the premises that he or she was invited or reasonably expected to use.

Use the first bracketed phrase if the case involves activities of the operator of the business and not condition of the premises. Use the last bracketed phrase if the case involves a condition of the premises and not activities of the operator of the business. Use all three bracketed phrases if the case involves both activities and condition of the premises. If the case involves property damage only and not personal injury, the bracketed phrase “for his or her safety” should be changed to read “to avoid damaging his or her property.”

For a discussion of the standard of care owed to an invitee, see the Comment to WPI 120.06 (General Duty to Business or Public Invitee—Activities or Condition of Premises).

A business owner has a duty to exercise reasonable care and diligence to protect invitees from reasonably foreseeable injury resulting from criminal acts of third parties. This includes the duty to warn invitees of a potential danger created by other invitees or other people in the vicinity of the business. See the Comment to WPI 120.06.03 (Duty to Business Invitee—Protection from Criminal Acts).