An accidental death is an unnatural death that is caused by an accident, such as a slip and fall, traffic collision, or accidental poisoning. Accidental deaths are distinguished from death by natural causes,

disease A disease is a particular abnormal condition that negatively affects the structure or function of all or part of an organism, and that is not immediately due to any external injury. Diseases are often known to be medical conditions that a ...

, and from intentional

homicide Homicide occurs when a person kills another person. A homicide requires only a volitional act or omission that causes the death of another, and thus a homicide may result from accidental, reckless, or negligent acts even if there is no inten ...

s and

suicide Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Mental disorders (including depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, personality disorders, anxiety disorders), physical disorders (such as chronic fatigue syndrome), and ...

. An accidental death can still be considered a homicide or suicide if a person was the unintentional cause. For criminal purposes, intentional homicides are usually classified as

murder Murder is the unlawful killing of another human without justification or valid excuse, especially the unlawful killing of another human with malice aforethought. ("The killing of another person without justification or excuse, especially the ...

. Exceptions such as

self-defense Self-defense (self-defence primarily in Commonwealth English) is a countermeasure that involves defending the health and well-being of oneself from harm. The use of the right of self-defense as a legal justification for the use of force ...

vary by

jurisdiction Jurisdiction (from Latin 'law' + 'declaration') is the legal term for the legal authority granted to a legal entity to enact justice. In federations like the United States, areas of jurisdiction apply to local, state, and federal levels. J ...

, and in some cases, persons accused of murder have asserted as a defense that the deceased was actually the victim of an accidental death, rather than an intentional act. However, a person who is responsible for the accidental death of another through

negligence Negligence (Lat. ''negligentia'') is a failure to exercise appropriate and/or ethical ruled care expected to be exercised amongst specified circumstances. The area of tort law known as ''negligence'' involves harm caused by failing to act as ...

may still be criminally liable for

manslaughter Manslaughter is a common law legal term for homicide considered by law as less culpable than murder. The distinction between murder and manslaughter is sometimes said to have first been made by the ancient Athenian lawmaker Draco in the 7th ce ...

, and civilly liable for wrongful death. Accidental death and dismemberment insurance and similar

insurance policies In insurance, the insurance policy is a contract (generally a standard form contract) between the insurer and the policyholder, which determines the claims which the insurer is legally required to pay. In exchange for an initial payment, known as ...

pay a benefit in the event of accidental death, With these policies it must be demonstrated that a given death is in fact an accident, rather than an intentional suicide or homicide (which might involve

insurance fraud Insurance fraud is any act committed to defraud an insurance process. It occurs when a claimant attempts to obtain some benefit or advantage they are not entitled to, or when an insurer knowingly denies some benefit that is due. According to the ...

). It has been suggested that the "vast majority of accidents are not really accidents of chance, but rather accidents of folly, negligence, and blatant human misjudgment". The

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is the national public health agency of the United States. It is a United States federal agency, under the Department of Health and Human Services, and is headquartered in Atlanta, Georg ...

reports that in the US in 2015, there were 146,571 "unintentional injury deaths" that year, the fourth leading cause of death. Of those, 47,478 were from unintentional poisoning, 37,757 were from traffic accidents, and 33,381 were from falls. Approximately 500,000 deaths due to drowning are reported annually, worldwide. In a couple of countries, all accidental deaths (or apparently accidental deaths) are investigated by government bodies, and sometimes a family will do a

private investigation A private investigator (often abbreviated to PI and informally called a private eye), a private detective, or inquiry agent is a person who can be hired by individuals or groups to undertake investigatory law services. Private investigators of ...

. Inquests in England and Wales, for example, are held into sudden and unexplained deaths, and a fatal accident inquiry is performed for accidental death in

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to ...

. A verdict of "accidental death", in such cases, is returned when there is no contributory factor from an action or omission of the victim (" death by misadventure") or by another person (" unlawful killing"). Deaths during wartime, due to imprecise or incorrect targeting, maybe euphemistically termed collateral damage, or the result of friendly fire.

References

{{death Causes of death

See also

References