Effective: August 16, 2016
Latest Legislation: Senate Bill 75 - 131st General Assembly
(A) As used in this section:
(1) "Agricultural production" has the same meaning as in section 929.01 of the Revised Code.
(2) "Agritourism" means an agriculturally related educational, entertainment, historical, cultural, or recreational activity, including you-pick operations or farm markets, conducted on a farm that allows or invites members of the general public to observe, participate in, or enjoy that activity.
(3) "Agritourism provider" means a person who owns, operates, provides, or sponsors an agritourism activity or an employee of such a person who engages in or provides agritourism activities whether or not for a fee.
(4) "Farm" means land that is composed of tracts, lots, or parcels totaling not less than ten acres devoted to agricultural production or totaling less than ten acres devoted to agricultural production if the land produces an average yearly gross income of at least twenty-five hundred dollars from agricultural production.
(5) "Participant" means an individual, other than an agritourism provider, who observes or participates in an agritourism activity.
(6) "Risk inherent in an agritourism activity" means a danger or condition that is an integral part of an agritourism activity, including all of the following:
(a) The surface and subsurface conditions of land;
(b) The behavior or actions of wild animals not kept by or under the control of an agritourism provider;
(c) The behavior or actions of domestic animals other than vicious or dangerous dogs as defined in section 955.11 of the Revised Code;
(d) The ordinary dangers associated with structures or equipment ordinarily used in farming or ranching operations;
(e) The possibility of contracting illness resulting from physical contact with animals, animal feed, animal waste, or surfaces contaminated by animal waste;
(f) The possibility that a participant may act in a negligent manner, including by failing to follow instructions given by the agritourism provider or by failing to exercise reasonable caution while engaging in the agritourism activity that may contribute to injury to that participant or another participant.
(B) In a civil action, an agritourism provider is immune from liability for any harm a participant sustains during an agritourism activity if the participant is harmed as a result of a risk inherent in an agritourism activity. Nothing in this section requires an agritourism provider to eliminate risks inherent in agritourism activities.
(C) An agritourism provider is not immune from civil liability for harm sustained by a participant if any of the following applies:
(1) The agritourism provider acts with a willful or wanton disregard for the safety of the participant and proximately causes harm to the participant.
(2) The agritourism provider purposefully causes harm to the participant.
(3) The agritourism provider's actions or inactions constitute criminal conduct and cause harm to the participant.
(4) The agritourism provider fails to post and maintain signs as required by division (D) of this section.
(5) The agritourism provider has actual knowledge or should have actual knowledge of an existing dangerous condition on the land or regarding facilities or equipment on the land that is not an inherent risk and does not make the dangerous condition known to the participant, and the dangerous condition proximately causes injury or damage to or the death of the participant.
(D) An agritourism provider shall post and maintain signs that contain the warning notice specified in this division. The provider shall place a sign in a clearly visible location at or near each entrance to the agritourism location or at the site of each agritourism activity. The warning notice shall consist of a sign in black letters with each letter to be a minimum of one inch in height. The signs shall contain the following notice of warning: "WARNING: Under Ohio law, there is no liability for an injury to or death of a participant in an agritourism activity conducted at this agritourism location if that injury or death results from the inherent risks of that agritourism activity. Inherent risks of agritourism activities include, but are not limited to, the risk of injury inherent to land, equipment, and animals as well as the potential for you as a participant to act in a negligent manner that may contribute to your injury or death. You are assuming the risk of participating in this agritourism activity."