The Fatal Accidents Act 1976 (c 30) is an
Act of the
Parliament of the United Kingdom
The Parliament of the United Kingdom is the supreme legislative body of the United Kingdom, the Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories. It meets at the Palace of Westminster, London. It alone possesses legislative suprema ...
, that allows relatives of people killed by the wrongdoing of others to recover
damages
At common law, damages are a remedy in the form of a monetary award to be paid to a claimant as compensation for loss or injury. To warrant the award, the claimant must show that a breach of duty has caused foreseeable loss. To be recognised at ...
.
Background
The
Fatal Accidents Act 1846
The Fatal Accidents Act 1846 (9 & 10 Vict. c.93), commonly known as Lord Campbell's Act, was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, that, for the first time in England and Wales, allowed relatives of people killed by the wrongdoing o ...
had allowed claims for damages by the relatives of deceased persons for the first time. The 1976 Act modernised the process and repealed earlier legislation.
The Act
The Act allows claims as stipulated in s. 1(1):
The Act allows claims under three heads:
[Dow & Lill (2007)][Lunney & Oliphant (2003) ''pp.'' 855-858]
*Dependency claim (s. 1) - A claim for
economic loss by a restricted class of "dependant" defined in s.1(3).
*Bereavement claim (s. 1A) - A claim in recognition of grief by a further restricted class of "dependant", similar to a
solatium
Solatium (plural ''solatia'') is a form of compensation for emotional rather than physical or financial harm. The word entered English during the 1810s, as a loanword from Latin or .
World examples
England & Wales
Section 1A of the Fatal A ...
in
Scottish law
Scots law () is the legal system of Scotland. It is a hybrid or mixed legal system containing civil law and common law elements, that traces its roots to a number of different historical sources. Together with English law and Northern Ireland ...
. As of 1 May 2020, the amount of the bereavement claim award increased from £11,800 to £15,120.
*Funeral expenses (s. 3(5)) of the dependants.
An award must take account of any
social security
Welfare, or commonly social welfare, is a type of government support intended to ensure that members of a society can meet basic human needs such as food and shelter. Social security may either be synonymous with welfare, or refer specificall ...
benefits received (s. 4).
See also
*
Fatal Accidents Act
Fatal Accidents Act is a stock short title used in the United Kingdom for legislation relating to fatal accidents.
List
Acts of the Parliament of the United Kingdom
:The Fatal Accidents Act 1846 (9 & 10 Vict c 93), also known as Lord Campbell's ...
References
Bibliography
*
*
Law Commission
A law commission, law reform commission, or law revision commission is an independent body set up by a government to conduct law reform; that is, to consider the state of laws in a jurisdiction and make recommendations or proposals for legal chang ...
(1997)
Consultation Paper - Claims for Wrongful Death, LCCP148
* Law Commission (1999)
Claims for Wrongful Death - A Final Report, LC263
*
*
External links
The Fatal Accidents Act 1976 as amended from the
National Archives.
The Fatal Accidents Act 1976 as originally enacted from the
National Archives.
Acts of the Parliament of the United Kingdom concerning England and Wales
United Kingdom Acts of Parliament 1976
{{UK-statute-stub