KB-2023-002024 - [2025] EWHC 2300 (KB)

There is no doubt that this is a very tragic accident in which M suffered life changing injuries. Further E has suffered from witnessing the accident or its after-effects. Of course this court has sympathy for the situation that the Claimants and their family find themselves in. The lives of all involved in this accident have been impacted by the events of only a few seconds.

Having considered all of the factual evidence in this case I find that there was at least one parked vehicle present on the road in question. I find that M emerged (whether running or walking I do not know) from behind that vehicle. There was no opportunity in those circumstances for the Defendant to have taken any evasive action. I find that the Defendant was not negligent in failing to observe M before the accident. He would not have been able to see him in these particular circumstances. Further I find on the facts of this case that driving on a road adjacent to a school, 25 minutes after school closing, at no more than 20 mph was reasonably careful driving. There was nothing about the particular circumstances that were present on that day which ought to have alerted the Defendant to have driven at a slower speed or to have adjusted his speed upon approach.

This is not an accident that was caused by any negligence on the part of the Defendant. It was a tragic accident when a young child behaved impulsively and crossed the road in front of an oncoming vehicle, making a collision unavoidable. It was a genuine accident for which no one is to blame.

Answering the questions I need to answer therefore

In these circumstances the claim is dismissed.