There is a thin line between a case of "accident" and
that of "negligence". one is often mistaken for the
other. According to Section 24 of the Criminal Code
Act:

" Subject to the express provisions of this code
relating to negligent acts and omissions, a person is
not criminally responsible for an act or omission,
which occurs independently of the exercise of his
will or for an event which occurs by accident"

The above section is saying that a person cannot be
held criminally liable for any injury caused by him to another person by accident, except where their is an element of negligence in his act. You cannot claim compensation from someone, for an injury that occurred simply by accident. The question now is when will an incident that caused injury be tagged
as an accident and when will it be attributed to the
negligence of another person.

Accident is an unforeseen happening that occurs
unintentionally and results in “harm, injury, damage
or loss. These involves incidents that happen that
are beyond anyone control. WHEREAS
Negligence is a lack of “ordinary care” or “skill” in
the “management of person or property” that caused injury or harm to another person. This means, even though you never intent to injure anyone , but does an act which a reasonable man
ought to know would result to the injury of another.

When you cause an injury to another person or
damage another person's vehicle while driving. It
might be seen as an accident by a layman, because
there was no element of intention. But if there is a
compelling evidence that you were on phone call as
at the time ; that you have a faulty brake; that you
have no drivers license; that you were painting your
nails e.t.c , you will be held liable for negligence.
This is because you ought to have foreseen the likely outcome of your act or omission, but yet you carried on recklessly. You did not act carefully like a
reasonable man .

In a situation , where you spit out of the window and it landed on someone outside, you can't claim
accident. The law expect that a reasonable man
would first look out of the window to ensure no one
was out before spitting. You acted negligently and
recklessly, and can't be protected by law.

In any circumstances involving risk, it is important
to remember that the key test is that you assess and
act in a reasonable manner. The greater the risk of
injury, especially serious injury, the more the law
expects from you as a duty to plan and guard
against danger. You own a duty of care to you
neighbor.

In today’s society, many people think that it is
possible to sue for compensation whenever an
injury occurs, that windfall damages are dished out
automatically by the courts, things don't work like
that. Whether there is legal liability for any injury-
causing incident is based upon the facts surrounding a case. This is why it is important to
consult and retain a personal injury lawyer to
determine if your injury was “accidental” or due
to “negligence".

There must be a Law Section on nairaland simpliciter. Click like if you think so and share if you don't want, quote if you have a contrary opinion.