Summer is the season of growth — and not just for your plants. As temperatures rise and foot traffic increases, greenhouses, garden centers, and floral shops experience a surge in visitors. While this busy season presents exciting opportunities for your business, there’s also a heightened risk of accidents, particularly slips, trips, and falls, which account for 20% of annual workplace injuries.

From wet floors and hoses to uneven outdoor surfaces, the summer environment can introduce hidden hazards that place your customers, and employees, at risk — and expose your business to potential liability or workers’ compensation claims.

In addition to harming someone, a single injury on your premises can result in expensive lawsuits, increased insurance premiums, and reputational damage. In fact, when it comes to lawsuits, nearly three out of four executives (72%) in a recent survey recognized increases in litigation and multimillion-dollar verdicts as a problem in their industry. That’s why it’s critical to recognize and mitigate these risks via risk management practices before someone gets hurt and impacts your bottom line.

4 Common Hazards That Increase Liability Risks in Summer

Greenhouses and garden centers are naturally dynamic environments. But when you add unpredictable weather, high foot traffic, and routine irrigation into the mix, it creates a perfect storm for common causes of visitor injuries. Understanding these seasonal hazards and implementing summer visitor safety tips are critical to creating a safer environment for all.

1. Wet Floors and Walkways

During summer, water from irrigation systems or heavy rainfall can accumulate on walkways and concrete surfaces — indoors and outdoors. These wet surfaces create ideal conditions for slips, particularly near entrances — including at floral shops — where customers or employees track in moisture.

2. Hoses and Equipment Obstructions

Hoses are essential tools in any greenhouse, but if left out or stretched across walkways, they can become serious trip hazards. Similarly, carts, buckets, and tools stored haphazardly may obstruct foot traffic and increase the risk of injury.

3. Uneven Surfaces and Cracked Pavement

Many garden centers feature outdoor spaces with gravel paths, stone pavers, or older concrete walkways. Inconsistent elevations, potholes, and uneven joints in these surfaces are easy to overlook — but dangerous for unaware customers.

4. Cluttered Walkways

Summer sales, plant displays, and special events can lead to overcrowded aisles and walkways. When customers must navigate around obstacles or step over merchandise, the chances of a misstep — and a liability claim — increase significantly.

Failing to address these hazards doesn’t just increase the chance of injury. It also increases your business liability risks, which could result in lawsuits, medical expenses, and even punitive damages.

Preventive Measures to Minimize Liability Risks

Fortunately, many slip, trip, and fall hazards can be addressed with simple, proactive steps. Implementing a facility-wide safety program that includes regular training, audits, and maintenance can go a long way in protecting your customers — and your business.

Conduct Daily Walkthroughs

Start each day with a safety-focused walkthrough of your premises for facility hazard identification. Look for pooling water/algae, misplaced hoses, uneven surfaces, and items obstructing walkways. Encourage employees to report or address issues immediately and correct them as part of routine operations.

Inspect for Hazards Regularly

In addition to daily checks, perform daily hazard inspections during peak traffic hours, after heavy irrigation, or before and after storms. Pay special attention to high-risk zones such as entrances, greenhouses, and customer checkout areas. Keep the floor of walk-in coolers dry as well.

Improve Floor and Surface Safety

Invest in wet floor safety measures such as non-slip mats, warning signage, and quick-drying floor treatments. For outdoor walkways, consider repairing cracked pavement, filling potholes, and applying anti-slip coatings on frequently used paths.

Organize and Store Equipment Safely

Establish a process for safe equipment storage for your business, ensuring that hoses, carts, and tools are returned to designated storage areas when not in use. Hoses should be coiled and stored away from the main walkways. Staff should be trained on this protocol as part of onboarding and ongoing safety education.

Take Action if an Accident Happens

Even with the best precautions, accidents can still occur. How your horticulture business responds to a visitor injury can make a significant difference in outcomes — for both the injured party and your facility.

Respond Immediately and Calmly

If a customer falls or is injured, ensure they receive prompt attention. Administer first aid if necessary and call emergency services when appropriate. Document the incident thoroughly, including photographs of the area, weather conditions, and any hazardous elements. If you have video cameras at your facility, make sure to save the footage if there’s a chance it may be overwritten.

Report the Incident Internally

Create an internal incident report form and train your team on how to use it. The report should include time, date, location, witnesses, and a narrative of what happened. This step is essential for both risk management and insurance documentation.

Notify Your Insurance Provider

Don’t delay. As soon as possible, report the incident to your insurance carrier. Accurate and timely reporting is essential when it comes to processing insurance claims for visitor and employee injuries. Your insurer may offer guidance or dispatch a claims representative to help document the incident and assess liability.

Evaluate and Address Gaps in Safety

Use each incident as a learning opportunity. What contributed to the injury? Could it have been prevented? Was signage in place? Were workers properly trained? Identifying and correcting these gaps strengthens your safety program and helps prevent future incidents and claims.