Facts
On August 12, 1959, a collision occurred in Bern between a moped, driven by Hermann Feller, and a tram of the municipal transport company. Feller suffered a complicated knee fracture. He sued the municipality of Bern as the owner of the tram company for damages and compensation. The Court of Appeal of the Canton of Bern dismissed the claim, as Feller was to be blamed for gross negligence, which was the sole adequate cause of the accident. Feller then appealed to the Federal Supreme Court.Considerations
1. According to the Railway Liability Act (EHG), the owner of the railway company is liable for damages from railway operations, unless it proves that the accident was caused by force majeure, the fault of a third party, or the fault of the deceased or injured person. In the present case, only the plaintiff's own negligence is relevant. 2. The Federal Supreme Court considers the plaintiff's conduct to be grossly negligent. As a local moped driver, he should have known that trams cross the street at this location. He should therefore have driven particularly carefully and paid attention to oncoming trams. Instead, he drove at high speed without braking towards the intersection, although he could have seen and stopped for the tram in time. 3. No fault can be attributed to the tram driver. He had first warned with bell signals and only initiated an emergency stop when…