Woman Who Fell Into Pit At Oil Shop Loses Case

No, the Spee-Dee Lube was not responsible at all. The woman who fell into pit at the oil shop lost her case as the Michigan court of appeals said the pit was an obvious hazard.

Dorothy Urben of Flat Rock fell into hole while walking to the waiting room at the Spee-Dee Lube in July 2010. She said that she was not looking down at that time. “I didn’t slip on anything, no. I stepped into empty space.”

The court said that there were markings and warnings in the area. “It is reasonable to expect that an average customer of ordinary intelligence would discover the pit upon casual inspection. The pit created a risk of harm only because plaintiff did not discover the condition or realize its danger,” said judges David Sawyer, Henry Saad and Patrick Meter. “Thus, the condition was open and obvious.”