Unintentional Tort

What Does Unintentional Tort Mean?

An unintentional tort is an action taken by a party that accidentally causes harm to another party or their property, or results in financial loss. In the context of insurance, many individuals, companies, and organizations purchase coverage to protect themselves financially in the event they are required to pay damages resulting from an unintentional tort.

Insuranceopedia Explains Unintentional Tort

Liability insurance typically covers unintentional torts. For example, if a person invites guests to their home and one of the guests slips on marbles left on the floor and breaks her hip, liability insurance may protect the homeowner from a resulting lawsuit. In this case, the homeowner would likely have owed the guests a duty of care, meaning a reasonable person would have taken responsibility for cleaning up the marbles from the floor to prevent such an accident.