The Law in respect of a driver’s duty of care goes as far back as 1832 when the Courts recognised that pedestrians and vehicle drivers owed each other a duty to exercise due care and attention.
As a driver, who do you owe a duty of care to? Well in the case of Donaghue v Stevenson 1932, where Mrs Donaghue drank a ginger beer which had a snail in it, a principle to determine who you owe a duty of care to was established.
The Neighbour Principle
“The rule that you are to love your neighbour becomes in law, you must not injure your neighbour; and the lawyer’s question, ‘who in law is my neighbour?’, receives a restricted reply. You must take reasonable care to avoid acts or omissions which you can reasonably foresee would be likely to injure your neighbour. Who, then, in law is my neighbour? The answer seems to be – persons who are so closely and directly affected by my act that I ought reasonably to have them in contemplation as being so affected when I am directing my mind to the acts or omissions which are called in question.”“
Therefore, in applying this principle, it would appear that in the case of a driver, a duty is owed to all other road users. This is generally accepted as the case, of course.
However the standard of care owed to other road users is that of a reasonable driver. This was described in Nettleship V Weston as the standard to be expected of a competent and experienced driver.
In this case, the Court considered what the standard of care was owed by a learner driver to other road users and whether it should be the same as expected for an experienced driver. The Defendant was learning to drive and was being taught by the Claimant. The Defendant lost control of the vehicle resulting in a collision which caused injury to the Claimant. The Defendant claimed that the Claimant knew she was an inexperienced driver and therefore the Court should make allowance for this.
It was held that by applying a lower standard to a learner driver because the instructor is aware of their inexperience would result in shifting standards. It would imply, for example, that an inexperienced doctor owed his patient a lower standard of care if the patient was aware of his lack of experience. The standard of care for a learner driver should be the usual standard which is applied to drivers: that of an experienced and skilled driver.
So if you have been injured as a “Road User” due to a breach in a duty of care please call 0800 634 7575 for professional, legal advice.
