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United Kingdom
United Kingdom
Key definition
Secondary victim definition What does Secondary victim mean? In negligence practice, a secondary victim is someone who suffers a recognised psychiatric injury (nervous shock) without being directly endangered, but by witnessing a sudden, shocking event involving a primary victim, or by reasonably fearing for the primary victim’s safety. The term is not statutory; it is a case law label used to define when liability for psychiatric injury may extend beyond those physically involved. Across the UK and Ireland, key features typically include: foreseeability of psychiatric harm; a close tie of love and affection with the primary victim; proximity in time and space to the event or its immediate aftermath;...
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Occupational Stress Claims: Foreseeability, Breach of Duty, Causation and Apportionment, with HSE/MHSW Risk Assessments and ERRA 2013—Guidance from Hatton and Barber
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Practice notes
This Practice Note looks at the liability issues that frequently arise when dealing with a stress at work claim including foreseeability, the circumstances in which breach of duty can be established, the impact of statutory regulations, causation and the apportionment of damages.
Many psychiatric injury claims stem from a single incident or a brief sequence of related incidents. By contrast, work-related stress actions typically flow from matters unfolding across an extended span of time. In such situations, claimants are generally primary victims and, as a result, they are generally not required to satisfy the control mechanisms applied in secondary victim claims. In Hatton v Sutherland, the Court of Appeal considered four appeals concerning psychiatric illness arising from workplace stress, and Hale LJ issued guidance for the handling of these types of disputes. One of those matters proceeded to the House of Lords, where it is referred to as Barber v Somerset County Council. Lord Walker, in Barber, characterised Hatton as helpful guidance, but stressed it ought to be read only as such. Accordingly, Hatton provides practical direction; nevertheless, it cannot be regarded as definitive. Indeed, in Barber v Somerset, the House of Lords overturned the decision made by the relevant...
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Web page updated on 21/05/2026
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