IF MY CHILD GETS INJURED OR KNOCKED BECAUSE THEY PLAYED IN THE MIDDLE OF THE ROAD, SHOULD MY CHILD BE BLAMED FOR PLAYING IN THE ROAD?.

Nakimuli’s 5-year-old niece came to visit last week her favourite aunt. While Nakimuli was cooking lunch, she heard people screaming and ran out of the house to find her niece lying on the ground after being knocked by her neighbour Baji. Baji has refused to pay hospital bills or take care of any bills because the child was carelessly playing in the road. Nakimuli disagrees and wants to go as far as court to fight Baji. Does she have a case?

 

Yes, she does.

By law, if you put yourself in a position that you know is unsafe, without taking any precautions, then you and the person who created that situation are both to blame for what happened. You will be to blame for failing to protect yourself and the other person will be to blame for creating unsafe circumstances. 

For instance, if you decide to pose for a photo while holding your neighbour’s violent and dangerous dog and it bites you, then your neighbour is being reckless or negligent in allowing that dog out in the public, but you have equally contributed to the situation by negligently allowing your hand to touch the tough violent dog.  

This is the same when you are involved in an accident when you fall out through the windshield of a car because you refused to wear a seatbelt even if your car is knocked from behind. This is called contributory negligence in law.

📷: Hunting Happiness Project.

 

When there is a child involved. The situation is different. By law (decided court cases), a child cannot be said to blame for what happened to them unless they are of such an age as to be expected to take precautions for his or her own safety. A child below 10 years of age is not expected to take precautions for their own safety and cannot, therefore, be liable for contributory negligence. Therefore, Nakimuli’s niece may have been playing on the road, but as a 5-year-old child cannot be expected to take steps to look out for her safety. 

Remember this is considered on a case by case basis because some children below the age of 10 years may be more intelligent and able to take precautions for their safety than others and therefore they may be held to be contributory negligent for accidents they are involved in.

#BarefootLaw

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