Court throws out man's negligence lawsuit, rules he caused crash 

The Supreme Court has ruled that a man was the source of his misfortune in a 2013 road crash, dismissing his personal injury lawsuit against a taxi driver and the vehicle owner. 

Justice Andrea Jarrett, in a written judgment delivered May 16, found that Steven Thompson, who was 16 at the time, caused the crash by riding downhill with a friend on the crossbar of his bicycle, overtaking traffic before crashing into a taxi operated by Barrington Brown.

The vehicle was owned by Patricia Carnegie-Smith, who has now been awarded $139,000 in damages and loss of use after succeeding in a counterclaim against Thompson. 

“I find that it is more probable than not that the claimant, riding downhill with a pillion rider on the bicycle's cross bar, had difficulties balancing the bicycle, lost control of it, and collided into the right side of the 2nd defendant's (Brown) taxi,” Justice Jarrett ruled.

The crash occurred on February 14, 2013, along the Penn Hill main road in Manchester.

Thompson filed the negligence lawsuit in January 2017, seeking, among other things, special damages to cover medical and transport expenses. Brown was the first defendant, and Carnegie-Smith, the second defendant. The trial took place over three sittings between 2023 and 2025.

Thompson, then a student at Troy High School, claimed he was riding cautiously when Brown's taxi, allegedly speeding and overtaking other vehicles, collided with him.

But the court found Thompson's version implausible and contradicted by his medical records.

Thompson sustained an open fracture to his right knee, was hospitalised for months, and underwent multiple surgeries. In court, he said the crash left him unable to play sports, deeply depressed, and afraid to ride on the road again.

However, a contemporaneous medical report from the Mandeville Regional Hospital, written by Dr Margaret Wong, recorded a different account, which he court found more credible than the testimony offered at trial.

“Patient was the rider of a bicycle which was towing his friend on the handlebar. Attempted to overtake a car, lost control, and ran into the car,” the report stated.

Thompson disputed ever saying that to the doctor. But Justice Jarrett found no explanation for why he had not challenged or corrected the report in the 10 years leading up to trial, especially since he relied on it in court.

“If Dr Wong had made a mistake… I would have expected that… steps would have been taken by the claimant to have Dr Wong correct it, before a trial, which took place 10 years later,” the judge wrote.

The court was also unconvinced by Thompson's claim that carrying a pillion on the crossbar did not affect his control of the bicycle. The judge said it was unsafe and a likely contributor to the crash.

“There can be no question, that it is unsafe to ride a bicycle with a pillion rider on the cross bar,” she wrote. “The extra weight… would likely create difficulties… particularly when riding downhill.”

The court noted that even Thompson admitted during cross-examination that he could not stop his bicycle because he was trying to regain balance.

Brown, the taxi driver, testified that he saw the bicycle suddenly overtake a vehicle and swerve into his lane. He claimed to have immediately pulled left into the soft shoulder and stopped, but the bicycle still struck the right side of his vehicle.

While there were inconsistencies in Brown's evidence, such as where exactly on the vehicle the impact occurred, Justice Jarrett said those discrepancies were not enough to discredit his overall account.

Ultimately, the court ruled that the Thompson failed to prove the driver was negligent or that he had breached the duty of care owed on the road. “There was nothing else the 1st defendant could have done in the circumstances, to avoid the collision,” the judge stated.

Thompson's claim was dismissed, and he was ordered to pay costs.

Meanwhile, Carnegie-Smith, the vehicle owner, was awarded judgment in her counterclaim for $111,000 in repairs and $28,000 for loss of use, with interest and legal costs. 

Thompson was represented by attorney Sean Kinghorn while Carnegie-Smith's case was led by attorney Jamila Maitland. 

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