20,000 BGN for a broken bone in a public transport accident

The Supreme Court of Cassation (VKS) awarded compensation in the amount of 20,000 leva for non-pecuniary damages (pain and suffering) resulting from a fractured radius bone of the left wrist joint in a trauma in public transport. The fracture was the result of a sudden stop of a bus from the Sofia Public Transport (SKGT) while traveling at a speed that was not in accordance with the road conditions.

The incident – falling into a public transport bus

The tort in this case is the sudden stop of a public transport bus, which resulted in injuries to one of the passengers - a broken radius bone in the left wrist joint.

An investigation was conducted to determine the cause of the sudden stop, which ended with the suspension of the criminal proceedings due to the failure to identify the perpetrator. In this case, the victim filed a claim for compensation with the The Guarantee Fund*.

After questioning witnesses and conducting several expert examinations, it was established that the bus in which the passengers were riding stopped suddenly, causing the injured person to fly forward and hit his left hand. The reason for the sudden stop has not been established - behavior of a third party, the sudden appearance of another car or pedestrian, or in order to prevent Road accident. In the absence of definitive evidence, it cannot be assumed that the sudden, abrupt stop of the bus was caused by another road user or was necessary to prevent an accident, i.e. that the driver acted in circumstances of extreme necessity.

The court found the bus driver to be at fault for the accident: "Drivers of a road vehicle are required to drive at such a distance from another vehicle moving in front of them that they can avoid hitting it when it slows down or stops suddenly. Drivers of a road vehicle must not reduce speed abruptly unless this is necessary to prevent a traffic accident.". The absurdity of the case is that since the public transport bus has not been identified (although the time of the accident and the route on which the bus was traveling are known), the Supreme Court of Cassation has held that The Guarantee Fund should be responsible.

This shows why the defense of a qualified lawyer is necessary in every case. If the defense of the Guarantee Fund had established which public transport bus was involved in the accident, its insurer under the "Motorists' Third Party Liability" insurance would have been responsible for the compensation.

The compensation

In order to award compensation in the amount of BGN 20,000 for the non-pecuniary damage suffered from the incident that occurred on a public transport bus, the court took into account:

– the type and nature of the injuries sustained;

– the duration and intensity of the pain and suffering endured;

– as well as residual damage and possible pain when changing weather and

– the age of the victim at the time of the accident.

As a result of the claim being upheld, the Guarantee Fund is ordered to pay statutory interest on this amount, as well as all costs associated with the litigation.

*When is the Guarantee Fund responsible and can the injured party turn to it: for damage caused by a motor vehicle that is unidentified or for which the at-fault driver does not have valid compulsory motor third party liability insurance or when there is no compulsory passenger accident insurance; for damage from motor vehicles that are usually located in the Republic of Bulgaria, if it results in the bankruptcy of insurers offering compulsory motor third party liability insurance and/or compulsory passenger accident insurance, which insurers are headquartered in the Republic of Bulgaria or are from a third country through a branch registered in the Republic of Bulgaria.