Do Citizens Sue Fire Departments?

[legeros]

Do citizens ever sue fire departments, in the way patients sue physicians for malpractice? In particular, do property owners ever try to take fire departments to court, to claim that firefighters didn't perform well enough or such, and thus greater damage occurred??

I have never heard of such things, but it's a question that comes to mind from time to time, when I read forum and blog discussions about firefighting tactics. And when someone says "looks like they pushed the fire back in" or "they probably did more damage," the little lawyer in my head goes "yikes." (I decline to identify how many other little people might be in there, however...)

Or are there overarching laws or statutes that keep firefighters from such suits? Just curious...

mjl

[Bones42]

Yes, sometimes citizens bring suit against the Fire Department.

[tree68]

From what I've heard it's a growing trend. Just like in the medical world, "they did the best they could" isn't always good enough any more.

Check your insurance policy and see if you're covered for "errors and omissions."

[nameless]

It should happen more, but more so for the administration who cuts staffing, cuts corners on equipment, and does whatever else possible to take away the ability of the troops to fight.

[105]

They do. Like anything else, negligence on the part of the fire department that can cause harm can be actionable. Quick perusal of google news seems to indicate that gross incompetence - such as extremely late response times or brutally retarded fireground actions - are the most common reasons for the fire department being sued. I assume there is a different level of expectation for both from a rural volunteer department than a career urban one.

http://www.bcbarristers.com/en-US/po...Your-Fire.aspx

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-s...-lawsuits.html

[FiremanLyman]

Tort Claims Acts (28 USC Section 2674) has basically repealed the old sovereign immunity that most government agencies had. This gave the public the ability to recover compensation for harm done by the government. Since this was national legislation it trumped the ability of the states to claim sovereign immunity.

To receive compensation under tort claims a party must first file a claim with the government. If the claim is denied then the person can file a suit against the governmental agency.

That said there is personal protection for firefighters operating on the job. Statutory immunity is designed to protect the department and individual firefighter against tort claims who is; a) working in an official capacity of the department, and b) operating within the policies and procedures of the department. There is also the 1997 Volunteer Protection Act which covers volunteer firefighters/EMS from tort claims.

All this said, there are many examples of parties suing firefighters. Either they were operating outside of the law and the department's policies and procedures or a blood sucking lawyer has pushed the issue with a sympathetic judge and they go to court. If the department has a policy or procedure that goes against national best practices, this also opens up the department for law suits.

Also, each state has their own law concerning statutory immunity. Each states law is worded differently and the coverage varies greatly.

There is a great text named "Legal Considerations for Fire and Emergency Services" by J. Curtis Varone.

[FloridaFireEMT]

So here is a scenerio, what if a 911 call was made for a wellbeing check and upon arrival you find a house with a car in the driveway and all of the doors/windows are locked and windows are covered. The bystanders stated that they know that a person lives here alone at this house. The bystanders state that no one is answering their phone when it is called. Bystanders stated that they have not heard from the resident for the past week. The only visual sign of a person inside the house is the car in the driveway. You decide to force entry through the front door, upon entry you find an empty house. You try to secure the door the best you can, that night one of the bystanders that was there earler that day that called you in the first place comes back and robs the house of its valuables. The person that lives there at that address comes back in a cab from a vacation trip via.an airplane. They find the house robbed and they find out that the fire department broke into the house a few days eariler and caused damage to their front door. They sue the FD for damaging their front door and as a result they were also robbed. Where do we draw the line?

[tree68]

Where do we draw the line?

We transfer the responsibility to law enforcement. Let them bust down the door.

And that's exactly what we do here, too.

[FloridaFireEMT]

We transfer the responsibility to law enforcement. Let them bust down the door.

And that's exactly what we do here, too.

Here where I am from, 100% of the time the PD is incapable of forcing a door or window by themselves and the FD is the only one able to force entry into anything. The PD here rely on the FD.

[tree68]

Here where I am from, 100% of the time the PD is incapable of forcing a door or window by themselves and the FD is the only one able to force entry into anything. The PD here rely on the FD.

Nonetheless, they can still take on the responsibility for the breach.

[105]

Nonetheless, they can still take on the responsibility for the breach.

Exactly. The fire dept. may breach the door, but under the authority of law enforcement. Let them do their job, we'll do ours.

[rm1524]

Anytime we have to breach a house LE is on scene and they take responsibility for the entry.

[ChiefKN]

Anytime we have to breach a house LE is on scene and they take responsibility for the entry.

OH and also to re-secure the property.... we don't want to be tasked with that afterwards.

[rm1524]

OH and also to re-secure the property.... we don't want to be tasked with that afterwards.

We will assist them in securing the property. They still are the responsible party.

[DeputyChiefGonzo]

It should happen more, but more so for the administration who cuts staffing, cuts corners on equipment, and does whatever else possible to take away the ability of the troops to fight.

Do you really think that the political administration of a city, town or county will accept the blame? They will BLAME US, THE FIREFIGHTERS and tuck it to us faster than a horny teenager trying to get laid on Prom night.....