What is considered a car accident

How do you know whether an accident is considered a car accident according to Israeli law? This is a complicated question. The law does not always provide an unequivocal answer to whether a particular case is considered a traffic accident that constitutes grounds for compensation according to the Road Accident Victim Compensation Law. There are many extreme cases, such as injury during road repair, injury from a certain component of the vehicle, injury caused by a vehicle without direct contact, and more. In this article, we present important legal information that will help you better understand how to answer this difficult question.

Not every injury from a motor vehicle is considered a car accident. For some, this may be confusing, since the classic situation that comes to mind when you imagine car accidents is that of a pedestrian being run over or a collision between vehicles. What happens in cases of an injury from a certain component of the vehicle, such as a seat belt (when attaching or detaching it) or the trunk of the car – could such injury be considered as injury from a car accident? Many will argue that this is not a car accident, and perhaps rightly so. This is also the opinion of Israeli courts in many cases.

However, it is important to remember that in view of the broad definition of a car accident under Israeli law, there is not always a simple answer to this question. For example, in cases of injury during car repairs, injury while getting in and out of the vehicle, etc. Whether or not these are considered a car accident is crucial, as it will help understand if an injured person can claim compensation by filing a claim under the Road Accident Victim Compensation Law or through a standard tort claim. This is why it is highly recommended to consult a lawyer specializing in tort law and the Road Accident Victim Compensation Law. Below are examples of common situations that illustrate the difficulty in determining whether or not an accident is a car accident.

Is injury during road repair considered a car accident?

Road repair is a general name for cases in which, due to a malfunction of the vehicle, the driver must stop the car in order to carry out a repair or an operation that will allow the continuation of the trip. Road repairs can include adding oil or water to the radiator that has heated up during the trip, changing a flat tire, etc. According to the Road Accident Victim Compensation Law, any injury that occurred during road repair or maintenance performed by the vehicle user or another person who does not engage in road maintenance for a living (such as a mechanic) may be considered a road accident. However, the decision in a specific case highly depends on the circumstances and the tests established by the courts over the years.

This difficulty can be demonstrated by two different judgments regarding incidents of road repair of the car radiator. In a judgment of the Tiberias Magistrate’s Court in 2011 (case number 952-06-07), a claim was filed against the insurance company by a man who was injured while adding water to the radiator in his car. As he poured in the water, the radiator cap fell into the car’s engine. The man reached out for the radiator cap, and unfortunately his hand was injured by the car’s fan. The court ruled that since the incident took place after the trip had already ended, in the yard of the man’s house, and also since the plaintiff stated that it was a routine car malfunction (as opposed to a sudden malfunction), the incident was not considered a car accident.

On the other hand, in a judgment from 2007, in the Tel Aviv Magistrate’s Court (case number 60252/04), a man sued the insurance company claiming his injury was caused by a car accident. The man was driving his car and the engine overheated. When the driver stopped his car and opened the radiator cap, boiling water splashed on him, and he was injured in various parts of his body. The court ruled that the totality of the circumstances shows that it is a road repair, and as a result compensation was awarded to the plaintiff in the amount of 8,000 ILS. The above two cases, although they are similar in the sense that both caused damage to the vehicle owner, ended in completely different decisions, indicating the extent to which the legal outcome depends on the specific circumstances of each case.

Is injury suffered while getting in or out of the vehicle considered a car accident?

The law states that use of a motor vehicle for the purpose of determining whether an accident is a car accident also includes getting in or out of the vehicle. Accordingly, an incident of injury when entering or exiting the vehicle may or may not be considered a car accident. An example of a case that was recognized as a car accident can be found in a 2017 ruling of the Haifa Magistrate’s Court (case number 29119-11-15). The decision involved a driver who worked in food distribution, who slipped and hurt his ankle while getting out of his vehicle. The court ruled that the incident was included in the definition of the law and ordered to pay the driver 60 thousand ILS.

On the other hand, in a judgment of the Beer Sheva Magistrate’s Court (case number 1849/99), the court discussed the injury of a woman who was hit by a passing vehicle while she was about to get into a taxi. The court ruled that the woman cannot be considered a taxi passenger, since in practice, she had no contact with the taxi. In other words, the incident of getting into the car was not recognized as a car accident. However, in light of the injury from the passing vehicle, the driver of the offending vehicle was ordered to pay a total of approximately 33,500 ILS.

Is an injury caused by the car door or by the trunk considered a car accident?

Unlike the cases mentioned above, in this case, the law states that loading and unloading cargo from a vehicle is not a car accident. However, over the years, the courts have given conflicting decisions in extreme cases involving loading and unloading. In 2019, an important Supreme Court ruling was published (case number 8744/18), which limited the range of cases that would be considered a car accident. The ruling dealt with a person who drove to Ben Gurion Airport in his car. While removing the suitcase from the back seat of his car, the door slammed on his hand and his finger was severed. The court ruled that despite the unfortunate circumstances, this case cannot be considered a car accident. This is because when taking the suitcase out of the vehicle, the driver had already parked his vehicle and stood firmly outside the vehicle, in a way that cut off the sequence of using the vehicle for transportation purposes.

Despite this ruling, it is still possible to claim compensation in similar cases, even if they are not recognized as a traffic accident. An example is a case of injury caused by a vehicle, but without physical contact with the vehicle. A ruling in this respect was given in 2014 at the Petah Tikva Magistrate’s Court (case number 15701-07-11). The case dealt with an elderly man who went shopping at the supermarket. When he returned to his car that was parked outside the supermarket and put the bags of groceries from the shopping cart into the trunk, a nearby car hit the cart, which was pushed towards him and caused him serious injuries. The court ruled that although the loading of the products in the vehicle does not meet the definition of a car accident, the plaintiff must be considered a pedestrian who was injured in the accident. The plaintiff was awarded damages in the amount of 400,000 ILS.

Summary

In this article, we discussed the dynamic definition of a car accident, and how much it depends on the different nuances and circumstances of each case. More often than not, it is possible that a certain event will be recognized as a car accident, but a similar case with a slight difference will not be considered a car accident. It is important to know that even when an accident cannot be recognized as a car accident you may still be entitled to file a claim for damages, or alternatively for recognition as a work accident or establish an entitlement to a disability allowance at the National Insurance Institute. In light of the multitude of legal options, it is recommended to consult a lawyer specializing in tort law and compensation claims for road accident victims, in order to examine the appropriate course of action under the circumstances.

What is considered a car accident – contact our experts

In this article, we described various extreme cases that may be considered car accidents and entitle the victims to compensation, and the difficulty in determining that an accident is considered a car accident. If you have questions or need advice and assistance in individual cases, we will be happy to help. Our office regularly represents accident victims in tort claims against insurance companies, the National Insurance Institute and all legal courts. To contact an expert lawyer in the field and schedule a consultation in our office, in Jerusalem or Tel Aviv, click here.