Negligence Examples: Most Common Scenarios | October 2024

What Are Some Examples of Negligence?

The best way to understand negligence is with examples. These examples help you understand the elements of negligence and how they apply to particular fact patterns, including the following:

Car Accidents

Roughly 94% of car crashes result from driving errors. Some of the most common include:

• Following too closely
• Failing to yield at intersections
• Disobeying traffic signs and signals
• Distracted driving

The most common cause of crashes in many states is distracted driving, such as texting or using headphones. A distracted driver is almost always negligent because they fail to focus on driving the way a reasonable driver would. As a result, injured motorists, pedestrians, and cyclists can seek a car accident settlement from the distracted driver’s insurer.

Truck Accidents

Trucking companies can act negligently in a few ways, which can result in catastrophic truck accidents. A company might load a trailer unevenly, leading to load shifting while driving. It might negligently hire a driver with a checkered driving record. The company might even carelessly implement its drug and alcohol testing program.

Trucking companies are also vicariously liable for crashes caused by the negligent truck drivers they employ. With the high number of truck drivers in the U.S., some will inevitably have poor driving skills or substance abuse issues, leading to crashes.

Pedestrian Accidents

Pedestrian accidents can result from pedestrian or driver negligence. A pedestrian can cause a pedestrian accident by jaywalking. A driver can cause a pedestrian accident by failing to yield to pedestrians at intersections or crosswalks. In both cases, the negligent party violated traffic safety laws. A pedestrian accident attorney can be very helpful in such situations.

Slip and Fall Accidents

The liability for slip and fall accidents falls on property owners who fail to maintain safe premises.

For example, a restaurant manager has a responsibility to find hazardous conditions and either warn guests or repair the hazard. Suppose that a guest spills their drink. The restaurant’s staff has a reasonable time to put up “slippery when wet” signs and mop up the spill. If they fail to do so, the restaurant is liable for negligence.

Real Estate

The same principle applies in real estate. Examples of negligence in real estate include landlords or property managers neglecting to address known hazards, such as broken stairs or faulty wiring, which could lead to tenant injuries. Real estate agents may also act negligently by failing to disclose known defects in the property, exposing buyers or tenants to harm.

Workplace Accidents

Examples of negligence in the workplace often stem from employers failing to maintain safe working conditions or employees neglecting proper safety procedures, which can lead to a workers’ compensation claim. For instance, examples of employee negligence at work could include failing to follow safety protocols, leading to injuries, or mishandling equipment, causing damage or harm. These incidents can expose employers to liability if proper oversight and safety training were not provided.

Medical Malpractice

Medical malpractice is another term for medical negligence. According to the statistics, about 5% of personal injury cases involve substandard medical care. Medical negligence can happen when doctors make unreasonable mistakes when diagnosing and treating patients.

It also happens when medical practices, laboratories, and hospitals negligently mix up records or expose them to dangerous drugs.

Elements of Negligence

Negligence occurs when someone fails to exercise due care. In other words, someone is negligent when they act in a way that they know — or should know — they should not.

Negligence requires proof of four elements:

Duty of Care

The duty of care comes from the relationship between the parties. Drivers have a legal duty to drive with reasonable care around other motorists, cyclists, and pedestrians.

Doctors owe patients a legal duty to provide reasonably competent and skilled medical care. Property owners owe legal duties to invite guests to reasonably find and fix hazardous conditions. In the workplace, employers have a duty to maintain a safe environment for employees.

Breach of Duty

A breach of duty happens when someone fails to meet the duty of care. This can occur in a few ways. First, a breach of duty happens when someone violates a safety rule. Thus, a driver who runs a red light acts negligently.

Second, a breach of duty happens when someone performs an act that is legal but unreasonably dangerous. For example, no state has a law against driving without a shirt or eating while driving. But a driver who eats a messy sandwich while driving in heavy traffic might have acted negligently.

Damages

The damages come from the injury. Someone who suffers an injury incurs medical expenses and may lose income during their recovery. They may also have diminished earning capacity due to permanent disabilities.

Finally, they could experience pain, suffering, disability, and disfigurement. This is the amount that will go into a lawsuit settlement.

Causation

Causation has two parts. A cause-in-fact falls naturally and logically in the sequence of events that resulted in the injury. For example, failing to find a spill in the drink aisle of a grocery store might be a cause-in-fact of someone’s slip and fall accident.

A proximate cause is an event that could foreseeably cause an injury. “Proximate cause” does not require proof that the at-fault party knew the exact accident or injury that happened. Instead, the injury lawyer must prove the action was the type of conduct that could reasonably expose others to the risk of injury or death.

Contact ConsumerShield to Learn More About Negligence Law

Negligence examples help explain legal concepts. But your injury case has factual details that require legal analysis so you understand whether you have a case. Contact ConsumerShield for a free case evaluation and a referral to a lawyer to provide further analysis.