In British Columbia, the law allows individuals to seek compensation for injuries sustained due to the negligence of others whether it’s directly due to the actions of an individual or due to leaving an unsafe environment at a place where it was reasonably foreseeable that injury to another might occur (often called slip and fall, or occupiers liability claims). While most discussions around negligence focus on drivers, animal attacks or property owners, the question of whether you can sue for injuries caused by negligent walking is less frequently addressed by the Courts. One of the few significant decisions on this topic is Faircrest v. Buchanan et al., 2015 BCSC 657.
Understanding Legal Negligence
In a legal sense, negligence occurs when a person fails to exercise reasonable care, resulting in harm to another party. The four elements that must be proven in a negligence claim are:
- That the defendant owed a duty of care to the plaintiff
- That the defendant breached that duty of care
- That specific breach caused the plaintiff to suffer injuries
- Those injuries resulted in the plaintiff suffering actual damages and losses
In the context of walking, a pedestrian must exercise reasonable care while navigating public spaces. This includes being aware of their surroundings, obeying traffic signals, and not engaging in distracting behaviors, such as using a mobile phone.
Negligent Walking
While the concept of being negligent while walking seems foreign, there really is little difference between negligent walking and negligent operation of a motor vehicle. The only substantial difference is that a motor vehicle has greater weight and can achieve greater speeds which thereby causes greater injuries and damages, however at the core the concepts are the same.
Common examples of situations that could result in cases of negligent walking could include:
- Distracted Walking – If a person is not watching where they are going, perhaps because they are focused on a smartphone or other devices while walking it is easy to see how accidents could happen
- Intoxicated Walking – An individual who is walking while impaired by drugs or alcohol can impair judgment and coordination, which could lead to accidents
- Walking where you shouldn’t be – If an individual was walking somewhere where they should not be and it was not reasonably foreseeable to expect them to be there, any accident caused by their walking might arguably be actionable
Claims for negligent walking can also involve those who utilize motorized assistance devices to get around, or individuals using electric skateboards, scooters or hoverboards, amongst other motorized devices.
Contributory Negligence
One issue which would arise more often with claims of negligent walking is contributory negligence. As most negligent walking injuries would occur when both parties are walking, it is open for defendants to argue that the plaintiff was also negligent for not watching out for hazards while they were walking, which could reduce the liability of a defendant. If both parties were walking while distracted and impacted each other, both parties could share fault for any resulting injuries and losses.
Compensation for Negligent Walking Claims
Each case is unique and dependent on the surrounding circumstances. However, if you have a successful claim for negligent walking you can claim compensation for the following losses, amongst potentially others:
- Pain and suffering (or non-pecuniary damages)
- Past loss of Income
- Future loss of income
- Loss of capacity to earn income
- Loss of homemaking capacity
- Cost of future care
- Out of pocket medical expenses (or special damages)
- In-trust claims
Personal Injury Lawyers at Taylor & Blair LLP
Understanding whether or not you have a claim for negligent walking will take a careful review of the evidence and fact pattern and a firm understanding of the law of negligence. The experienced personal injury lawyers at Taylor & Blair LLP can help.
If you think you have a claim for injury and losses resulting from negligent walking, contact the experienced personal injury lawyers at Taylor & Blair LLP today for a free consultation.