[Direct answer]When the construction fence blocks the road and causes people to fall and get injured, the construction party shall bear the responsibility first. According to Article 1258 of the Civil Code of the People's Republic of China, if the constructor fails to prove that he has set up obvious signs and taken safety measures when excavating, repairing or installing underground facilities in public places or on roads, he shall bear the tort liability — this is a presumption of fault liability. The constructor must prove that he has fulfilled his obligations of warning and protection, otherwise he shall bear compensation. If the fence does not leave a safe passage space, there are no warning lights at night, the site is slippery and potholed, or the detour route is dangerous, it is a failure to fulfill the safety obligations. The construction unit shall bear corresponding responsibilities if it violates the regulations on contracting or fails to handle the approval for road occupation. The public road managers who fail to fulfill their obligations of cleaning, protection and warning shall also bear responsibilities (Article 1256). If the pedestrians themselves are not careful enough, they may reduce the responsibility of the constructor according to Article 1173, but it does not affect the claim for compensation. After the incident, taking photos and videos immediately, seeking medical treatment and calling the police can help to safeguard their rights and interests first.Legal services for personal injury and medical disputesEvaluate the claim settlement plan.

1. Problem background and typical scenarios

The renovation of municipal pipe networks, subway construction, and the decoration of buildings and shops have made barrier fences blocking roads a common sight in cities, which in turn has led to disputes over pedestrian injuries. Typical scenarios include: barrier fences completely occupying sidewalks, forcing pedestrians to detour onto motor vehicle lanes and resulting in accidents; barrier fences lacking reflective markings or warning lights at night, causing pedestrians to collide with scaffolding or fall into the foundation pits within the barrier fences; mud everywhere around the barrier fences on rainy days, with templates randomly stacked, making the road slippery and causing pedestrians to fall; and barrier fences blocking roads for a long time without any construction work being carried out, leaving safety hazards unaddressed. Victims often face three difficulties after the incident: not knowing whether to seek compensation from the construction unit or the development unit; evidence being lost due to the barrier fences being removed or modified the next day; and the construction party blaming the pedestrians for "not paying attention to their surroundings". The legal framework for such cases is actually quite favorable to victims, but the key lies in evidence collection.

II. Key points of dispute

  • Identification of responsible parties: The construction unit that directly organizes the construction is the first responsible party. The construction unit and the road management personnel shall bear corresponding responsibilities when they fail to fulfill their obligations of approval, management, and warning. The injured often overlook the real compensators because they only focus on one party.
  • Is the safety measure qualified? The contractor shall provide evidence to demonstrate whether the obvious signs and safety measures meet the requirements, including the stability of the fence, night-time warning lights, reflective signs, safe detour channels, and guidance prompts. However, the contractor shall not be held fully responsible or primarily accountable for any shortcomings in the evidence provided.
  • The boundaries of pedestrian faults: looking down at a mobile phone, failing to pay attention to road conditions at night, etc. are circumstances that may reduce the liability of pedestrians, but the general negligence of pedestrians cannot offset the lack of safety protection on the part of the construction party. The division of responsibility proportion is the main point of contention in the courtroom trial.

III. Professional analysis by Henglue Lawyers

Henglue Law Firm handles cases involving harm caused by roadside construction, focusing on the burden of proof in the "contractors proving their innocence" scenario. According to Article 1258 of the Civil Code of the People's Republic of China, the burden of proof for "having set up clear signs and taken safety measures" is directly assigned to the contractors, which means that the victims do not need to first prove the contractors' fault, but only need to prove that the damage occurred in the construction area and its impact range; if the contractors cannot provide approval procedures, warning configurations, or daily inspection records, they will bear adverse consequences. In practice, two overlapping subjects need to be investigated: first, the construction units that illegally contract out projects or start construction without obtaining roadside permits, and they will bear corresponding responsibilities according to their faults; second, the public road managers. According to Article 1256, if there are items piled up on public roads that hinder traffic, and the managers cannot prove that they have fulfilled their obligations of clearing, protecting, and warning, they will bear corresponding responsibilities. At the same time, roadside construction must be approved and equipped with safety protection facilities, which is a clear requirement of the Road Traffic Safety Law of the People's Republic of China. Unauthorized roadside construction without approval is itself evidence of major faults. Regarding the proportion of liability, the court usually only gives minor or no reduction of liability to pedestrians in cases where the contractors clearly violate regulations. The compensation items are determined according to Article 1179, and in cases of disability, the victims can also claim disability compensation and mental damage compensation (Article 1183). If the project involved in the case has quality and compliance issues, it can be dealt with separately.Real estate sales and construction project servicesTeam collaboration; if the contractor delays performance after the judgment, the parties concerned may refer to it for reference.Creditor-debtor relations and enforcement case servicesAdvance.

IV. Practical suggestions and legal basis

At the legal basis level: Article 1258 of the Civil Code of the People's Republic of China (effective January 1, 2021) establishes the presumption of liability for the contractor's fault; Article 1256 stipulates the manager's liability in the case of objects piled up on the road; Article 1173 sets forth the rule of offsetting fault; Article 1179 lists the items of compensation; Article 1183 stipulates compensation for mental damage; and Article 1165 serves as the general basis for fault liability. At the practical advice level: After being injured, immediately take photos of the scene from multiple angles using a mobile phone—including the location of the barrier fence, the presence of warning lights and reflective signs, the condition of the detour channel, and the terrain of the fall location—and record the time of the shooting. Check the name of the construction and development unit on the barrier fence signboard. If the name cannot be determined, report the case to the traffic police or urban management department for retrieving the approval information. Seek medical treatment on the same day, and ensure that the medical records clearly state the location and cause of the injury. After the injury stabilizes, apply for a disability assessment. Keep proof of loss such as loss of income certificates, care expenses, and transportation receipts.

5. Henglue Law Firm's Reminder

The golden window for evidence collection in cases of injuries caused by roadblocking is only a few days: the barrier may be moved, the warning facilities may be replaced, and the surveillance cameras may be covered. Evidence should be collected immediately after the incident and applications for preservation of surrounding surveillance should be made. During the negotiation stage, the construction party often uses the "insurance compensation" tactic to delay or offer small compensation in exchange for a one-time settlement agreement. Before signing the agreement, it is necessary to assess the possibility of follow-up treatment and disability compensation. Do not give up on major items such as disability compensation for the sake of the current amount. If the construction party is a link in the subcontracting chain, identifying the general contractor and the construction unit as defendants can significantly increase the enforcement rate. The statute of limitations is three years (Article 188 of the Civil Code of the People's Republic of China), but evidence collection is not a matter of waiting. For case assessment, you can contact us through the following link:Beijing Henglu Law FirmMake an appointment for consultation, and the lawyer will develop a plan for evidence collection and claim making.

Q1: I fell because I was walking while looking at my phone. Can I still get compensation for the injury?

Generally, it's possible, but the amount may be reduced. According to Article 1173 of the Civil Code of the People's Republic of China, if the infringed party is at fault for the occurrence of the damage, the infringer's liability may be reduced, but only according to the proportion of fault, and the contractor's liability will not be exempted automatically. If the contractor fails to prove that he has set up obvious signs and taken safety measures — for example, no warning lights at night, or fences blocking the sidewalk without detour instructions — he still needs to bear the main liability for compensation; negligence such as checking one's phone is just a secondary factor. Therefore, don't give up claiming compensation just because you're a bit negligent. First, fix the evidence of the contractor's violations, and the court will comprehensively determine the liability proportion.

Q2: Is it the construction unit or the development unit that should be notified of this matter?

The construction units shall be the main parties, and the construction units and road managers shall be added as necessary. According to Article 1258 of the Civil Code of the People's Republic of China, the construction units, that is, the construction units that actually organize the construction, shall bear the liability of presumed fault; if the construction units have such faults as failing to go through the approval procedures for occupying public roads, illegally contracting out the project, and failing to fulfill their obligations of safety management, they shall bear corresponding responsibilities. If the information is incomplete when suing, the plaintiff may first file a lawsuit against the known parties based on the public announcement boards and the police reports, and then apply to the court to investigate the construction approval materials to add defendants. Multiple parties being listed concurrently can avoid the situation that a single party lacks the ability to pay and results in the judgment being unenforceable, which is a common strategy in such cases.

Q3: What compensation items can be claimed?

According to Article 1179 of the Civil Code of the People's Republic of China, if a person infringes on another's rights and causes personal injury, the infringer shall compensate for the reasonable expenses incurred for treatment and rehabilitation, including medical expenses, nursing fees, transportation fees, nutrition fees, and hospitalization subsistence allowances, as well as the income lost due to work interruption. If the victim suffers from a disability, the infringer shall also compensate for the cost of assistive devices and disability compensation. If the infringement causes serious mental harm, the infringer may claim compensation for mental distress according to Article 1183 of the Civil Code. For those with more severe injuries, a disability assessment should be conducted after the treatment ends, and the assessment conclusion serves as the core basis for disability compensation. Each item of loss must be supported by receipts, certificates, or appraisals, and stating the calculation method when making a claim will increase the likelihood of obtaining support.

Q4: There are no surveillance cameras on site and no witnesses can be found. What should I do?

The evidence chain can be pieced together from multiple channels: the police report and the on-site handling records of the responding police officers; the 120 emergency records and the records of the injury location and cause in the medical records; the damaged mobile phones and stained clothes left at the scene; photos of the barrier fences; self-filmed records of surrounding merchants; 12345 complaint tickets; the contractors' daily inspections and insurance reporting records, all of which can indirectly reconstruct the facts of the incident. After the incident, it is necessary to revisit the scene as soon as possible to take photos of the barrier fences and apply for access to traffic surveillance cameras and merchant surveillance cameras in adjacent sections (with a limited coverage period, so action must be taken quickly). After hiring a lawyer, it is also possible to apply for a court investigation order to retrieve construction approval documents, subcontracts and construction logs, which can help corroborate the facts and make the determination of the truth not an impossible task.

Q5: The contractor asked me to sign a one-time settlement agreement. Can I still change my mind?

Those who meet the conditions can do so. After an injury, the condition of the injury often changes. If there is a significant misunderstanding about the injury when signing the agreement, if the amount of the agreement is significantly out of balance with the actual losses and constitutes an unfair deal, or if the other party engages in fraud or coercion, they may request the revocation of the agreement in accordance with the provisions of Articles 147 to 151 of the Civil Code of the People's Republic of China. The right of revocation shall be exercised within one year from the date when the revocation grounds become known or should have become known (the major misunderstanding is within 90 days). For subsequent treatment costs, even if the agreement is not revoked, the newly incurred and necessary subsequent treatment costs can also be claimed separately according to law. For those who have been seriously injured, do not sign the "one-time settlement" clause before the disability appraisal. If you are unsure, please consult a lawyer to review the agreement text first.

If you are facing similar problems, it is recommended that you consult a professional lawyer as soon as possible with the evidence materials, so as to avoid missing the statutory time limit.Personal injury legal services·Beijing Henglue Law Firm