Tort Law

This page within Virginia Tort Case Law is a compilation of cases reported by the Virginia Supreme Court and summarized by Brien Roche dealing with the topic of Duty to Passenger and the related topic of vehicle accidents.For more information on passengers see the page on Wikipedia.

Duty to Passenger- Cases

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 1970 Sykes v. Langley Cabs, Inc., 211 Va. 202, 176 S.E.2d 417.

Plaintiff alighted from cab on pier on dark and stormy night, fell, and drowned. Relationship of carrier and passenger does not terminate until after passenger has alighted from conveyance and has had reasonable opportunity to reach place of safety.

1964 Terminal Cars, Inc. v. Wagner, 205 Va. 214, 135 S.E.2d 802.

Plaintiff passenger in taxicab that stopped suddenly. Highest degree of care called for.

1963 Shamblee v. Virginia Transit Co., 204 Va. 591, 132 S.E.2d 712.

Common carrier owes to passengers highest degree of care. Carrier is not liable for jerks and jolts necessarily incident to use of conveyance. Rule is otherwise where jolts are unnecessarily or unusually sudden or violent.

1956 Long’s Transfer v. Moore, 198 Va. 608, 95 S.E.2d 221.

Duty to passenger. City ordinance requires cab drivers to utilize shortest route possible to customer’s destination. Use of one route that is somewhat longer and allegedly more dangerous than another available route was at most remote cause of collision.

1956 Jamison v. Richardson, 198 Va. 190, 93 S.E.2d 140.

Neither private nor common carrier can be held responsible for injuries to passenger whose voluntary conduct in placing himself in position of danger is proximate cause of his injuries.

1955 Crist v. Coach Co., 196 Va. 642, 85 S.E.2d 213.

Common carrier must exercise highest degree of practical care for safety of its passengers, but this does not make carrier insurer of passenger’s safety. Hence, carrier is not liable for ordinary jerks and jolts which are necessarily incident to use of conveyance but is liable for jerks and jolts which are unusually sudden or violent.

1952 Virginia Transit Co. v. Tidd, 194 Va. 418, 73 S.E.2d 405.

Common carrier has duty to exercise highest degree of care for safety of its passengers.

1951 Tri-State Coach Corp. v. Stidham, 191 Va. 790, 62 S.E.2d 894.

Plaintiff’s minor decedent struck and killed by defendant’s bus. While common carrier is not insurer of safety of its passengers, it owes to them very high degree of care and is liable for slightest negligence that such care could have foreseen and guarded against. Relation of carrier and passenger does not terminate until after passenger has alighted from conveyance and has had reasonable opportunity to reach place of safety.

1948 Dey v. Virginia Transit Co., 187 Va. 635, 47 S.E.2d 552.

Bus caused to stop suddenly because motorist pulled in front of him. Plaintiff injured by sudden stopping. No negligence as to bus driver.

1947 New v. Atlantic Greyhound Corp., 186 Va. 726, 43 S.E.2d 872.

Virginia Code § 56-329 is valid as to intrastate commerce.

1946 Houston v. Strickland, 184 Va. 994, 37 S.E.2d 64.

Carrier is under no obligation to accept as passenger person who is intoxicated. But when it does accept such person as passenger, it must exercise such care as is demanded by reasonable prudence and foresight. Such persons cannot be ejected at such place where their condition would especially expose them to insult or injury.

1946 Atlantic Greyhound Corp. v. Shelton, 184 Va. 684, 36 S.E.2d 625.

Common carrier owes to passenger highest degree of care known to human prudence and foresight.

1942 Birtcherd’s Dairy v. Randall, 180 Va. 311, 23 S.E.2d 229.

Bus accident. Common carrier owes passenger highest standard of care.