A natural accumulation is any natural environmental accumulation of rain, snow, sleet, or hail that accumulates without any actions by the property owner. An unnatural accumulation could occur when the accumulation of rain, snow, sleet, hail, or other environmental element was due to an action of the property owner. Property owners can be held responsible for a failure to promptly clear a natural environmental accumulation. Further, a property owner can be held responsible if the actions in clearing snow, sleet and/or ice creates a hazardous condition – an unnatural accumulation. Definitions of natural accumulation include: Situations that may cause unnatural accumulation, resulting in potential premises liability: Both ANSI (American National Standard Institute) and ASTM (American Society for Testing and Materials) have standards for snow and ice control for property, as well as requirements for snow and ice management services. Generally, commercial property owners should have snow removal contracts that fulfill the local jurisdiction’s requirements for snow removal both in terms of the depth of snow and the timeliness of removal of that snow. Additionally, owners should monitor the ground conditions after the initial removal efforts and based on ground conditions, respond as necessary with additional removal efforts. If you need help with a case involving natural or unnatural accumulation, submit a case review online.