OVERVIEW
In this topic we are going to discuss nervous shock which is also known as mental or emotional distress and other psychiatric injury. So, here in this topic we will see its key elements, and other things related to this topic. Let us begin with the topic.
NERVOUS SHOCK
Nervous shock refers to the claim in the tort that when a person gets psychiatric injury, or emotional distress due to any incident. Which is also known as emotional distress. This includes many problems like mental stress, post traumatic stress disorders, etc it is unlike physical harm and injury. There are some of the key elements through which one can take a brief about it. Let us start.
Elements
- The claimant should have to show that there is a nervous shock which causes him to have psychiatric problems unless mental stress, anxiety, etc will not be sufficient unless it manifests diagnose problems.
- There should be a close relationship between the claimant and the incident which has caused nervous shock. It can be of three types like physical proximity, relational proximity, and temporal proximity.
- There should be foreseeability in which the person of normal attitude has changes in psychiatric problems which is the result of that incident.
- In this case the claimant usually has direct perception of that incident or its immediate aftermath. Which can include hearing, seeing which immediately experience traumatic incidents.
CLAIMANTS CATEGORIES
The category of claimant is usually divided into two types which includes primary claimant and secondary claimant, let us see what they are in brief.
- Primary claimant
This kind of claimant are those victims who are directly involved in that incident which was at the risk of physical harm. So, they can claim for the injury if it is psychiatric injury caused due to those incidents.
- Secondary claimant
Secondary claimants are those who are not involved directly in those incidents but they are suffering through psychiatric injury because they had witnessed those incidents.
There are some criteria which have to meet with which includes,
- There should be a close relationship with the primary claimant.
- There should be the presence of a secondary claimant needed when the incident was happening or arrive immediately after the incident.
- There should be a psychiatric injury caused due to a shocking event.
DEFENCES
There are some of the defence which the defendant can claim to take defence in the case of nervous shock. Let us see what they are in brief.
- If the defendant proves that psychiatric injury is not done by the foreseeability of their actions.
- If the defendant shows that the claimant condition or emotional distress is not caused by psychiatric injury which is constituted by recognising a medical report.
- If it has been proved that the proximity criteria is not meeting its need to ensure the relationship of claimants.
CONCLUSION
So, here at the end of this topic we have learnt how nervous shock which is a tort can harm a person via emotional distress, and other psychiatric injury which is caused by the traumatic incidents. The legal requirements for these claimants can be reflecting the essential potential to balance the interest of claimants to put extensive liability on the defendant for the act he did.
