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1/2 Inch Variation in Stair-Step Height (In Violation of Fire Safety Code) Established Negligence

The First Department determined plaintiff had established a case of negligence based upon a 1/2 inch height differential among stair steps where plaintiff fell:

Plaintiff’s expert supported her opinion that the stairway was defective “by nonconclusory reference to specific, currently applicable safety standards or practices” … . Section 5-2.2.2.4 of the National Fire Protection Association Life Safety Code [1994] requires that there can be no variation exceeding three sixteenths of an inch “in the depth of adjacent treads or in the height of adjacent risers and the tolerance between the largest and smallest tread cannot exceed ⅜.” Plaintiff’s expert identified the Life Safety Code Handbook as a published authoritative and nationally recognized accepted industry standard for safe staircase construction and maintenance in the field of architecture. When asked if plaintiff’s expert was correct in that regard, defendant’s expert replied “yes.” …  The trial court’s finding that the 1994 Life Safety Code is applicable because the stairs were renovated in 1996, when defendant constructed a new tile floor directly on top of an existing floor on the second floor landing, which created the height differential in the location where plaintiff lost her balance, is supported by a fair interpretation of the evidence. … Thus, plaintiff’s expert testimony that the one half inch differential caused plaintiff’s fall established a case of negligence against defendant. Rondin v Victoria’s Secret Stores LLC, 2014 NY Slip Op 02664, 4-17-15

 

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