Victims Are Not Always Involved in the Accident
When it comes to personal injury law, the victims who can recover for damages or injuries resulting from an accident are not always limited to persons involved in the actual accident. A wreck that happened in Knoxville last Saturday afternoon provides a great example. As a Knoxville Fire Department fire engine was rushing to assist a choking victim, a white truck made a left hand turn and struck the fire engine. Although there were no reported injuries as a result of the crash, another fire truck had to be called to assist the choking victim.
The article does not posit or speculate who was at fault for the accident. The white truck may have failed to notice that the fire truck was coming and pulled out, hitting the fire truck. Likewise, the fire truck could somehow have been driven in a negligent manner, causing it to strike the white truck. It is always important to be aware of the possible presence of emergency vehicles. This includes taking precautions like not listening to the radio or an iPod so loud that you cannot hear the warning sirens of such vehicles.
Even though there were no injuries caused to any of the parties involved in the wreck, there was still a victim who stood to suffer a great deal of damages as the result of someone’s negligence. The wreck caused a delay in the emergency response to the choking victim, which may have cost him or her precious time and jeopardized her life. Although the person at fault for the accident did not injure anyone directly involved in the wreck, the party at fault for the wreck could potentially be liable if the choking victim were to suffer increased injuries or death as a result of the delayed response by emergency services caused by the wreck. This situation illustrates that drivers should always be aware that their actions may injure more than just those who are involved in the accident itself. Likewise, victims should be aware that their injuries can be caused or increased by a number of different actors, meaning a greater number of persons than expected can sometimes be held liable for the victims’ loss.
Source: http://www.wbir.com/news/local/story.aspx?storyid=109446&catid=2
