accidents can happen

[midlife]

Lord Denning of the Rolls said something like "an accident does not necessarily imply negligence", or something along those lines indicating that there is indeed simply an accident which is nobody's fault.

I might have the quote incorrect but covers the OP's post.

Shaun

 

[glenn forger]

If you change lanes without looking then it's not an accident. It's avoidable. No accident. You may as well say someone who changes lanes without looking while speeding and playing with a phone caused an accident. It's utterly stupid.

 

[DaveReading]

 

[ufkacbln]

So,in what way were they both equally to blame for the [bunny fingers] accident [/bunny fingers]?

Do bunnies have fingers

 

[Profpointy]

If you change lanes without looking then it's not an accident. It's avoidable. No accident. You may as well say someone who changes lanes without looking while speeding and playing with a phone caused an accident. It's utterly stupid.

It's all very well re-defining the meaning of the word "accident". What word would you suggest instead - I can't off the top of my head think of a different word with the same meaning (ie the meaning you object to )

 

[jefmcg]

Do bunnies have fingers

 

[Lonestar]

That looks like one grumpy bunnie....

 

[Lonestar]

She's got better moves than an Addison Lee driver...

 

[mjr]

It's all very well re-defining the meaning of the word "accident". What word would you suggest instead - I can't off the top of my head think of a different word with the same meaning (ie the meaning you object to )

It's not @glenn forger who's attempting to redefine "accident", is it? To pick a random dictionary, WordNet defines "accident" in this context as "anything that happens suddenly or by chance without an apparent cause" but when it comes to road collisions, it seems either "without an apparent cause" is being ignored or the writer is prejudging that no-one caused it. Or in Webster 1913, there's a note that "Accident, in Law, is equivalent to casus, or such unforeseen, extraordinary, extraneous interference as is out of the range of ordinary calculation" which seems like it rarely applies to many cycling-involved collisions that get called accidents by motoring apologists.

 

[Profpointy]

It's not @glenn forger who's attempting to redefine "accident", is it? To pick a random dictionary, WordNet defines "accident" in this context as "anything that happens suddenly or by chance without an apparent cause" but when it comes to road collisions, it seems either "without an apparent cause" is being ignored or the writer is prejudging that no-one caused it. Or in Webster 1913, there's a note that "Accident, in Law, is equivalent to casus, or such unforeseen, extraordinary, extraneous interference as is out of the range of ordinary calculation" which seems like it rarely applies to many cycling-involved collisions that get called accidents by motoring apologists.

You're being a bit naughty selectively picking one of several meanings defined in said dictionaries and then implying it only means that.

Let's take a neutral word like "round" dictionary would say something like - 1. blah blah ... like a football.
2. purchase drinks for a group.

And I ask again, can anyone suggest an alternative single word for an unintended outcome resulting in injury or damage caused by foolishness or negligence.

 

[Markymark]

Accident is a correct definition for a collision. It is avoided these days because modern parlance seems to accept that it means that no punishment should derive from it as it is mistakenly widely seen as being 'nobody's fault'.

We should therefore avoid the use of the word accident unless it is accepted that an accident can be punishable in court.

 

[Profpointy]

Accident is a correct definition for a collision. It is avoided these days because modern parlance seems to accept that it means that no punishment should derive from it as it is mistakenly widely seen as being 'nobody's fault'.

We should therefore avoid the use of the word accident unless it is accepted that an accident can be punishable in court.

Though there is some merit in the point, we still need an alternative word before it's feasible to abjure use of accident. A clumsy phrase won't really do, nor will "collision" as that only applies in a narrow sub set of "accidents" - eg going recklessly too fast and ending up upside down in a field isn't really a colllision with a field

 

[jefmcg]

We should therefore avoid the use of the word accident unless it is accepted that an accident can be punishable in court.

That's actually interesting. Should the accident be punishable, or the sequence of events that made it inevitable** I.E. should the offence be "crashing into another vehicle" or "using a mobile phone while driving"?

**at some point - even if it's just the moment before impact - every accident becomes unavoidable.

 

[psmiffy]

Im not a believer in accidents – only incidents – you may accidentally do something that causes an incident – but there is always a sequence of events or omissions that leads to the incident whether that be dropping a cup or knocking a cyclist off a bike.

 

[jefmcg]

Hence the phrase "accident prevention"