Nuisance

The case law suggested that, in an appropriate case, damage caused by fire emanating from an adjoining property could fall within the Rylands v Fletcher rule. The appropriate case, however, was likely to be very rare, because (i) it was the “thing” that had been brought onto the land which had to escape, not the fire which was started or increased by the “thing”; (ii) while the fire might be a dangerous thing, the occasions when fire as such was deliberately brought onto the land might be limited to cases where the fire had been deliberately or negligently started by the occupier or one for whom he was responsible; and (iii) in any event, starting a fire on one’s land might be an ordinary use of the land.