判决理由
A rescuer who suffers psychiatric injury from the horrifying scenes encountered during rescue operations may recover damages from the party whose negligence caused the original accident, provided the rescuer was exposed to personal danger.
事实
Mr Chadwick lived near the site of the Lewisham rail disaster (1957). He spent 12 hours crawling through wreckage helping injured and dying passengers. He subsequently developed severe anxiety and depression.
判决摘要
Waller J held that Mr Chadwick could recover. It was foreseeable that the defendant's negligence might lead to a rescue attempt, and the rescuer was a person to whom a duty of care was owed. The horrifying nature of the experience caused reasonably foreseeable psychiatric injury.
关键引述
"It has long been recognised that a tortfeasor who injures others may foresee that those injuries may lead to attempts at rescue."
— Waller J
后续处理
In White v Chief Constable [1999], the House of Lords clarified that Chadwick succeeded because he was in personal physical danger, not simply because he was a rescuer.