My bag falls off the overhead rack of a train onto the seat below. In case of damage or injury, who is liable and what to do?

Question

In most long-distance trains, notably in Europe, there are big racks for the larger bags and a shelf above the seats that runs the entire length of the car for smaller ones. The latter is also used for large suitcases when the train is rather full.

Recently, I had put a backpack on the shelf and took appropriate care to position it correctly. Two hours within the ride, while I was not paying attention, my backpack fell on the empty seat next to me. It may have moved with the small shakes of the train at random moments, until it tipped over the edge.

In this case, I was lucky. There was no one in the seat.

But it could have happened otherwise. If the falling bag injures a passenger, or damages a laptop on the tray table for instance, who is liable and what to do?

This can especially happen in double-decker trains where the roof of the top floor is rounded, leaving much less space in the overhead rack. Hours ago, I saw a similar incident happen on board a German ICE, as the train took a turn at high speed and the centrifugal force was enough to move the item off balance. In different situations, a slanted stretch of tracks can cause the bags to slide off.

This is why I am wondering if bearing full liability would be the standard, or if the railway can be involved for "bad" shelf design.

Answer 1

It depends on whose (in)actions caused the damage. Perhaps passenger A was negligent in positioning their luggage in the overhead rack. Possibly passenger B was negligent in rearranging A's bag. Rail company C might be liable either because their engineer was driving recklessly, or because the luggage rack was foreseeably inadequate for securing the intended luggage (something with no edge). Then again, A might have put a too-large bag in the rack.

The situation with airlines is similar, except that there are regulations requiring airlines to check the security of luggage and they have to check luggage (and warn passengers about shifting luggage). Failure to check the security of a compartment would be an inaction that can lead to liability.

Answer 2

I am assuming you are asking about liability in negligence, which requires breaching the standard of care when you owed a duty to someone.

Your stipulation that you "took appropriate care" answers the legal question: if it is in fact the case that you "took appropriate care", there is no liability for negligence for the bag falling on someone.

user6726 correctly explains further that if there is liability in negligence for the bag falling on someone, it would be on a party who (1) owed a duty to the person who was injured (or whose property was damaged); and (2) failed to take the requisite care.

Answer 3

germany

The answer is complicated. In Germany, there is a liability law, which even addresses trains specifically (in the first paragraph!): https://www.gesetze-im-internet.de/haftpflg/BJNR002070871.html

§ 1
(1) Wird bei dem Betrieb einer Schienenbahn oder einer Schwebebahn ein Mensch getötet, der Körper oder die Gesundheit eines Menschen verletzt oder eine Sache beschädigt, so ist der Betriebsunternehmer dem Geschädigten zum Ersatz des daraus entstehenden Schadens verpflichtet.

(2) Die Ersatzpflicht ist ausgeschlossen, wenn der Unfall durch höhere Gewalt verursacht ist.

(3) Die Ersatzpflicht ist ferner ausgeschlossen, wenn eine

1. zur Aufbewahrung angenommene Sache beschädigt wird;

2. beförderte Sache beschädigt wird, es sei denn, daß ein Fahrgast sie an sich trägt oder mit sich führt.

I couldn't find an official translation, so here is a Google translation (slightly redacted by me):

(1) If a person is killed, a person's body or health is injured or an item is damaged during the operation of a railway or a suspension railway, the operating company is obliged to compensate the injured party for the resulting damage.

(2) The obligation to pay compensation is excluded if the accident is caused by force majeure.

(3) The obligation to pay compensation is also excluded if a

1. the item accepted for storage is damaged;
2. The item being transported is damaged unless a passenger is carrying it or taking it on the train ride.

Depending on the specifics, the train operator or the passenger could be liable. In some of the cases you describe I would assume the train operator is liable but ultimately a court would need to decide based on the specifics.