Trip and Fall Hazard Analysis

ASTM F1637 addresses abrupt changes in level and the point at which one requires bevelling or a ramped transition. The building code and accessible-route requirements carry their own limits. The as-found dimension is measured and compared to whichever governs that location, not to a rule of thumb.

Yes, because people climb on rhythm rather than by looking at each tread. A riser differing from the others interrupts that rhythm at the moment the foot is committed. Dimensions are measured across the whole flight, since the variance between treads is the condition that matters.

It goes to whether a fall that began for another reason could have been arrested. Height, continuity, graspability and extension past the top and bottom risers are all measurable against the code in force. The opinion addresses the physical non-compliance, not the mechanics of the descent.

The same way as interior surfaces. The differential at the joint is measured, surrounding sections are examined for the settlement or heave pattern that produced it, and the result is compared to the standard and to the owner's own inspection and repair practice.

It can. A curled or rippled edge, a mat too thick for its location without a bevelled border, or one that shifts under traffic creates exactly the abrupt edge it was meant to remove. Mat type, backing, condition and placement are assessed against the traffic it serves.

Dimensional defects develop over months or years, so the repair record carries the weight: work orders, punch lists from a prior renovation, photographs taken for unrelated purposes, and the maintenance schedule for the area. Together they show when the condition became findable.