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Armstead v. Delaware Claims Processing Facility, IAB No. 1383199 (Order) (Dec. 5, 2012)

Slip and Fall in landlord's valet parking driveway is part of a tenant employer's premises for compensation purposes.

Claimant was injured while walking across a semi-circular parking apron (driveway) adjacent to a public street. Claimant slipped and fell on the asphalt of the driveway on her way into work. The driveway was owned and maintained by the owner of the building, the Employer was a tenant in that building.

Employer filed a motion to dismiss arguing that Claimant was not within the course and scope of her employment when injured. The Claimant contended that the driveway was part of the Employer's premises for the compensation purposes. The Board denied Employer's motion to dismiss. The Board recognized that the Employer did not have any responsibility for the maintenance or security of the driveway, this was the exclusive province of the landlord. Further, the Board cited to authority that suggested that use and control were operative requirements for premises liability. However, the Board concluded that the driveway was not an extension of the public street (this is likely the determinative fact), but rather was part of the Employer's premises. The Board reasoned that the Employer, through its business relationship with the landlord, maintained use of the driveway, which was therefore subsumed within Employer's premises.


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