Most of us, at least those of us who drive, will have practised the emergency stop. Its part of learning to drive after all. But the question is when should it be applied and in what circumstances would it be unreasonable to perform an emergency stop?
Clearly an emergency stop is required and is reasonable in the case of an emergency, such as if a child or person ran out into the road.
Should you apply an emergency stop for animals?
If an animal runs across the road, what should you do?
If you slam your brakes on then this causes other dangers, for example the car behind you may crash into the back of your vehicle. It’s a difficult one, deciding when it is reasonable for a driver to slam their brakes on.
Clearly if an emergency stop is performed for no apparent reason and it causes an accident, the person performing the emergency stop may be at fault. When you perform an emergency stop in a driving lesson, the instructor always makes sure that it is safe to do so. Slamming on the brakes for no apparent reason is clearly dangerous. However it could equally be argued that if the person or car behind left enough space, then they would still be able to avoid a collision.
Each case is considered on its own individual facts and the Court would look at reasonableness.
Was it reasonable for the driver to perform an emergency stop?
If it was unreasonable, then the driver of the vehicle performing the emergency stop could be at fault even if another vehicle collides with the rear of their vehicle!
This seems unfair as we cannot control the actions of drivers behind us and if adequate space is left then it could be argued that an accident could have been avoided.
Clearly it is reasonable to perform an emergency stop if another person ran out into the road. Clearly it is reasonable to perform an emergency stop to avoid a collision, say for example if a car pulled out in front of you. However the Court may deem it unreasonable to perform an emergency stop for an animal.
A lot seems to depend on the animal and its size!
Clearly birds, squirrels, etc… Often run out into the road and perhaps it would be unreasonable to slam on the brakes in these situations.
Obviously you should try to avoid the collision if you can safely do so, but performing an emergency stop may be deemed unreasonable.
If the animal is something much bigger such as a horse or cow, then it is likely that an emergency stop would be more reasonable.
It seems harsh to say it’s okay to run over some animals but not others, but it’s all a case of reasonableness and ultimately the law in this area is not very clear. That, and a collision with a horse/cow is likely to seriously damage your vehicle and perhaps even leave you injured, whereas hitting a squirrel is likely to have no affect on your vehicle or you!
The Courts have to look at each case on its own facts
Unfortunately there are fraudulent claims whereby drivers perform an emergency stop for no reason so that when a vehicle crashes into the back of them, they can claim compensation. Therefore the Courts do not rule anything out and if you performed an emergency stop without good reason, causing an accident, then you could be at fault.
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Image Credit: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Deer_Crossing_Dixboro_Road_Superior_Township_Michigan.JPG