Autumn leaves in Hemau: How to avoid dangerous slipping accidents!

Autumn leaves in Hemau: How to avoid dangerous slipping accidents!

Today, October 1, 2025, the Hemau city administration urged the population to comply with the cleanliness regulations and to remove fallen autumn leaves from sidewalks and cycle paths. By removing the leaves in a timely manner, the risk of slipping on traffic areas should be minimized. In particular, the drainage channels and sewer inlet shafts should be kept clear to ensure the unhindered drainage of rainwater, as hemau.de reports.

The ongoing cleaning work is not only a question of cleanliness, but above all also of traffic safety. The regulation stipulates that the cleaning obligation lies with the owners and authorized users of the properties that border on the public roads or are accessed via them. The tasks include clearing leaves and securing sidewalks, cycle paths and parts of the road. If road safety is at risk due to leaf fall, cleaning work must be carried out immediately.

Traffic safety obligation and legal consequences

Careless handling can not only be dangerous for passers-by, but can also have financial consequences. Administrative offenses that arise from failure to fulfill the cleaning obligation can be punished with fines of up to 1,000 euros. A current case from Bargteheide illustrates how seriously such obligations are taken: There, a plaintiff was arguing for compensation of 2,000 euros after she fell on a layer of leaves. The court found that the defendant had violated its duty to ensure traffic safety because the leaf removal was not carried out in a timely manner, as ra-kotz.de reported.

In the context of these legal disputes, it is important to know that owners and tenants are responsible for ensuring that paths on their property can be used safely as part of their traffic safety obligation. Accordingly, tenants can also be obliged to clean leaves if this is stated in the rental agreement. Municipalities, on the other hand, are primarily responsible for clearing leaves on public streets, but can delegate this responsibility to residents. There is a similar reform of the condominium law, which makes the homeowners' associations responsible for road safety.

Recommendations for leaf removal

The city administration would therefore like to encourage citizens to use the first autumn storms as an opportunity to clear their properties of leaves. The cleaning obligation extends between 7:00 a.m. and 8:00 p.m. on weekdays and between 9:00 a.m. and 8:00 p.m. on Sundays and public holidays. If you cannot remove the leaves yourself, you have the option of hiring a service provider. In addition, leaf blowers and vacuum cleaners must be used taking into account local noise regulations, which usually specify certain times. Burning leaves, on the other hand, is prohibited in most municipalities, while biological disposal in organic waste bins is recommended, as explained in haufe.de.

Preventing accidents caused by slippery leaves should be a community effort, which is why it is important to be clear about your own responsibilities and those of your neighbors. Together we can ensure traffic safety in Hemau even in the autumn season.