Matters in the Media

Rear-Ended on the Bruce at 100km/h — Who Was Actually at Fault?

Habig v McCrae [2013] QSC 335

A backpacker's van broke down on the Bruce Highway near Pindi Pindi at 10pm. A truck hit it at almost 100km/h. The plaintiff won — but walked away with half the damages after the court found he was equally at fault for not warning oncoming traffic.

This case is one of Queensland's leading decisions on contributory negligence — the rule that lets courts reduce your damages based on your own role in causing the accident.

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$400,000
Total damages assessed
50 / 50
How the court split fault between the parties
$200,000
What the plaintiff actually received after the reduction
The Case

Habig v McCrae
[2013] QSC 335

The plaintiff was a backpacker whose van broke down on the Bruce Highway near Pindi Pindi at around 10pm. The van was left angled across most of the southbound lane, facing slightly north, with no headlights and no hazard lights on. A 4WD travelling the opposite direction had pulled over to help, but before anything could be done, a truck travelling in the southbound lane collided with the van at close to 100km/h.

The plaintiff was standing near the van at the time. He sustained serious injuries in the collision.

The case went to trial primarily on the question of contributory negligence — not whether the truck driver was negligent (that was relatively clear), but to what degree the plaintiff had contributed to his own injuries by the way he handled the breakdown.

Read the full judgment on Queensland Judgements
Don't feel like reading? Watch our breakdown on TikTok

Both parties were negligent. The question was by how much.

Queensland road rules require drivers to follow at a safe distance and maintain a proper lookout at all times. Courts have consistently held that being distracted by one hazard is no excuse for failing to see another. The truck driver had seen the 4WD's hazard lights — but that only explains why he was looking off-road, not why he failed to spot an unlit van blocking most of a highway lane.

The court found the truck driver negligent on three grounds: failing to reduce his speed when he saw the 4WD pulled over, failing to use his high beams which would have revealed the van sooner, and failing to maintain a proper lookout for the well-known and foreseeable risk of broken-down vehicles on Queensland highways.

But the court also found the plaintiff had contributed significantly to his own injury. He was not trying to move the van off the road, not trying to warn approaching traffic, and was walking towards the 4WD without urgency. He should have understood that time was critical. The court split fault equally at 50/50, halving his $400,000 damages to $200,000.

How the court split fault 50/50

Courts use two measures to apportion contributory negligence: how far each party departed from reasonable care, and how much that departure actually contributed to the harm. Here's how that played out.

Plaintiff — 50% Truck driver — 50%
50%
50%
Plaintiff's failures

What the plaintiff should have done differently

  • Did not attempt to push the van off the highway or out of the traffic lane
  • Did not try to warn oncoming traffic by running ahead or signalling
  • Failed to appreciate the urgency of his situation — a large unlit vehicle across a dark highway at 10pm
  • Was walking unhurriedly toward the 4WD rather than taking immediate steps to reduce the danger
Truck driver's failures

What the driver should have done differently

  • Failed to reduce speed after noticing the 4WD parked on the opposite side of the highway
  • Failed to use high beams, which would have illuminated the van significantly earlier and allowed time to react
  • Failed to maintain a proper lookout — broken-down vehicles on Queensland highways are a well-known and foreseeable risk

Three key findings from the court

Beyond the 50/50 split, the court made several findings that are relevant to any road accident where a stationary vehicle is involved.

FINDING 01

One hazard doesn't excuse missing another

The truck driver's attention being drawn to the 4WD was not a defence for failing to see the van. Courts require drivers to maintain reasonable attention to all that is happening on and near the roadway simultaneously — not just the hazard they happened to notice first.

FINDING 02

Broken-down vehicles on highways are a foreseeable risk

The court described this as a "well-known and foreseeable risk" on Queensland highways. Drivers have a positive obligation to be alert to this possibility, adjust their speed accordingly, and use high beams at night in conditions where such a hazard might be present.

FINDING 03

If you create a road hazard, you have a duty to manage it

The plaintiff's breakdown was not his fault — but his response to it was. Once a vehicle becomes a hazard on a public road, the person responsible for it has a duty to take reasonable steps to warn other traffic, move the vehicle if possible, or otherwise reduce the danger to others.

Alex's Take
"

Contributory negligence is one of the most misunderstood concepts in personal injury law. A lot of people assume that if someone else drove into them, the other person is fully at fault. Habig is a useful reminder that courts look at the whole picture — including what you did or didn't do before the accident.

The 50/50 split here was arguably generous to the plaintiff given how little he did to manage a genuinely dangerous situation. No lights, no attempt to move the van, no effort to warn traffic — on a dark highway at 10pm. But the truck driver's failures were equally significant, particularly the failure to use high beams on a rural highway at night where broken-down vehicles are an obvious risk.

The practical takeaway: if you're ever in a breakdown situation on a highway, turn on every light you have, get off the road, and warn traffic if you can do so safely. It's not just common sense — it's the standard courts will measure you against.

Alex Bassingthwaighte
Alex Bassingthwaighte
Founder & Principal, Claimwise
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