Terms Used In Vermont Statutes Title 12 Sec. 5793

  • Consideration: means a price, fee, or other charge paid to or received by the owner in return for the permission to enter upon or to travel across the owner's land for recreational use. See
  • Land: means :

  • Owner: means a person who owns, leases, licenses, or otherwise controls ownership or use of land, and any employee or agent of that person. See
  • Person: shall include any natural person, corporation, municipality, the State of Vermont or any department, agency, or subdivision of the State, and any partnership, unincorporated association, or other legal entity. See
  • Personal property: All property that is not real property.
  • Recreational use: means an activity undertaken for recreational, educational, or conservation purposes, and includes hunting, fishing, trapping, guiding, camping, biking, in-line skating, jogging, skiing, snowboarding, swimming, diving, water sports, rock climbing, hang gliding, caving, boating, hiking, riding an animal or a vehicle, picking wild or cultivated plants, picnicking, gleaning, rock collecting, nature study, outdoor sports, noncommercial aviation, visiting or enjoying archaeological, scenic, natural, or scientific sites, or other similar activities. See

§ 5793. Liability limited

(a) Land. An owner shall not be liable for property damage or personal injury sustained by a person who, without consideration, enters or goes upon the owner’s land for a recreational use unless the damage or injury is the result of the willful or wanton misconduct of the owner.

(b) Equipment, fixtures, machinery, or personal property.

(1) Unless the damage or injury is the result of the willful or wanton misconduct of the owner, an owner shall not be liable for property damage or personal injury sustained by a person who, without consideration and without actual permission of the owner, enters or goes upon the owner’s land for a recreational use and proceeds to enter upon or use:

(A) equipment, machinery, or personal property; or

(B) structures or fixtures not described in subdivision 5792(2)(A)(iii) or (iv) of this title.

(2) Permission to enter or go upon an owner’s land shall not, by itself, include permission to enter or go upon structures or to go upon or use equipment, fixtures, machinery, or personal property.

(c) Posting. An owner may post a sign warning against dangers on the owner’s land or water. An owner who posts a sign pursuant to this subsection shall not be liable for any damage or injury allegedly arising out of the posting unless the damage or injury is the result of the willful or wanton misconduct of the owner. (Added 1997, No. 110 (Adj. Sess.), § 1; amended 2017, No. 136 (Adj. Sess.), § 1, eff. May 21, 2018.)