Invitee is a legal term for a person who comes onto another's property, premises or business establishment upon invitation. The invitation need not be expressly made to an individual. An invitation will be implied when a shop is open and the public is expected to enter to inspect, purchase or otherwise do business on the premises. Visitors in hospitals and users of public parks, though having no business purpose on the land are invitees and entitled to ordinary care in making the premises safe.
Invitees have certain rights, such as the expectation of safe conditions on the property or premises. Where an owner or occupier of land, by express or implied invitation, induces or leads others to come upon his premises for any lawful purpose, he is liable in damages to such persons for injuries caused by his failure to exercise ordinary care in keeping the premises and approaches safe. Therefore, the owner or proprietor might be liable for any injury suffered by the invitee while on the property due to an unsafe condition which is not obvious to the invitee and not caused by the invitee's own negligence.
Invitees are entitled to ordinary care from the landowner. Ordinary care may require only a warning in some cases, but, in other cases, ordinary care may require active efforts by the landowner to make the premises safe. Examples of conditions which can make a business owner liable to an invitee include faulty stairs, weak floors, slippery floors on rainy days, spills of which are not promptly cleaned up although known to the management, lack of adequate security guards to protect against muggers, and various careless acts of retail employees.
