A claim under Rylands v Fletcher can succeed where negligence would fail, because liability turns on the escape itself rather than on carelessness. This chapter sets out the scope of the rule — who can sue, who can be sued, and which types of damage are recoverable — before working through the elements of a claim: accumulation, a thing likely to do mischief if it escapes, non-natural use of land, an actual escape, and the role of foreseeability. It then covers the defences of act of God, act of a stranger, statutory authority and consent. Finally, it draws the line between the rule and private nuisance, the tort from which it grew and with which it is most easily confused.
