How can vicarious liability be justified?

According to English Law, Vicarious liability arises when one person is liable for the negligent actions of another person, even though the first person was not directly responsible for the injury. This liability is not removed from the tortfeasor, but rather it becomes joint and that the claimant is free to sue either party. It is a situation which most commonly arises during the course of employment: employers can be held vicariously liable for the action of their employees whilst at work.

Many reasons have been advanced to justify this departure from the fault principle. It is commonly said that the reasons behind the doctrine of vicarious liability are first, that the employer is in a better position to absorb the legal costs either by purchasing insurance or increasing his prices. Secondly, that the imposition of liability should encourage the employer to ensure the highest possible safety standards in running his business. The Latin maxim 'qui facit per alium facit per se' that means he who acts through another shall deemed to have acted on his own and 'respondeat superior' ("let the master answer") is commonly used in employer-employee relationships. In Bartonshill Coal Co. v McGuire ,1 Lord Chelmsford LC said: 'every act which is done by an employee in the course of his duty is regarded as done by his employer's orders, and consequently is the same as if it were his employer's own act.' It is said that the doctrine of vicarious liability has not grown from any very clear, logical or legal principle but rom social convenience and rough justice.

Another way to justify such liability is that employers must control the acts of employees and should be liable for them. According to Occupational Health and Safety Act I974, employers have a general duty to ensure so far as is reasonably practicable the Health and Safety of their employees. Analyzing this act, we can see that employers owe a duty of care to their employees and if any injuries occur to these people during their work, obviously they will be responsible. To avoid vicarious liability to take place, employers must provide sufficient instructions, information and trainings to their employees and explaining them clearly their duties at work. Had vicarious liability not present in Law, up to now there would have been massive cases related to vicarious liability......

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