Res Ipsa Loquitur: Who has to prove what in road traffic claims?

John McDonald discusses the requisite burden of proof What is the position when res ipsa loquitur applies? One view is that its effect is merely to raise an inference of negligence, which requires the defendant to give an explanation of how the accident could have happened without his negligence. It is trite law that in …
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Cases Referenced

  • Bennett v Chemical Construction (GB) Ltd [1971] 1 WLR 1571
  • Elizabeth v Motor Insurers' Bureau [1981] RTR 405
  • Ellor v Selfridge & Co Ltd (1930) 74 Sol Jo 140
  • Harvey v Motor Insurers' Bureau (2011) unreported 21 December
  • Henderson v Henry E Jenkins & Sons [1970] AC 282
  • Lloyds v West Midlands Gas Board [1971] 1 WLR 749
  • Roe v Ministry of Health [1954] 2 QB 66
  • Scott v London and St Katherine Docks Co (1865) 3 H & C 596
  • Widdowson v Newgate Meat Corporation [1998] PIQR P138