The recent fatal accident involving boxing star Anthony Joshua has reignited a critical legal conversation: who is responsible when a stationary vehicle causes a catastrophe?
While preliminary reports from the FRSC suggest factors like speed and overtaking were involved, the presence of a stationary truck on a major expressway raises serious questions about ‘Duty of Care’ and road obstruction.
The Legal Breakdown of Liability
As legal professionals, we must look at the three pillars of negligence in these cases:
- Obstruction as Negligence: Under Nigerian law, leaving a broken-down or parked vehicle on a high-speed road without adequate warning (like reflective triangles or hazard lights) can constitute Gross Negligence.
- Vicarious Liability: If the stationary truck belonged to a logistics firm, the company itself could be held liable for the driver’s failure to secure the vehicle or the company’s failure to maintain it.
- Contributory Negligence: Courts will often weigh the speed of the moving vehicle against the danger created by the stationary one. In high-profile cases like this, the ‘proximate cause’ of the accident becomes the centre of a multi-million naira legal battle.
This tragedy highlights the urgent need for stricter enforcement of road safety laws regarding broken-down heavy-duty vehicles.
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