Columbus, Georgia

INTER-OFFICE COMMUNICATION



DATE: July 3, 2003



TO: Carmen Cavezza, City Manager



FROM: Jaimie DeLoach, Assistant City Attorney



SUBJECT: Liability for Guardrails





I have researched your question as to Columbus Consolidated Government?s

liability for guardrails.



Short Answer: Columbus will have greater liability if it installs guardrails

than if it does not install them. The liability must be weighed against the

safety of the population.



Analysis: There are several Georgia cases dealing with severe injury or death

resulting from guardrails that were poorly designed, installed or maintained.

However, I cannot find any case holding a county liable in the absence of

insurance.



Sovereign/County governmental immunity absolutely protects Columbus

Consolidated Government. So the government is safe from liability with respect

to guardrails; however, its employees whom it indemnifies may not be.



Official immunity only protects government employees from claims of negligence

when they are exercising discretion. The decision to install guardrails is

clearly discretionary. The official will take into account budgetary demands

as well as safety demands. However, once the government decides to install

guardrails, many decisions thereafter will be of a ministerial nature.



Ministerial actions are not protected by immunity. Thus, liability for design,

installation and maintenance will arise if a governmental employee fails to

follow industry standards or departmental rules or regulations with respect to

design, installation and maintenance of the guardrails. This liability can be

significant. For example, in one Georgia case a driver was impaled upon an

improperly maintained guardrail that tore through the car.



Therefore, the wholesale installation of guardrails is inadvisable. They

should only be installed where necessary as additional liability attaches.



Let me know if you need additional research