Hall v. Seaboard Air Line Railway Co.

Citations

• 84 Fla. 9
• 93 So. 151

Syllabus

<p>1. Passengers upon railway trains have by virtue of their contract for transportation the right to be treated by the servants and employees of the carrier with kindness, respect, courtesy and due consideration and to be protected against insult, indignity and abuse from such servants and agents.</p> <p>2. A carrier’s liability to a passenger for indignities offered to the latter by the agents and employees of the carrier rests upon the duty it owes through such servants and not for the reason that the act is incident to a duty within the scope of the servants employment.</p> <p>3. The rule announced in the foregoing headnotes applies with special strictness to women passengers. Her 'contract of passage embraces a stipulation implied that the corporation will protect her against wanton approach from servants or employees of the carrier engaged in the general business of transportation.</p> <p>4. A carrier’s liability as insurer against indignities offered to a passenger by its employees rests upon the relation which such employees bear to the carrier as persons whom it has employed in the%eneral transportation of passengers.</p> <p>5. A stenographer employed in the office of a Division Superintendent and1 whose duties are purely clerical with power to exercise no authority or provide any arrangement for the comfort, protection and assistance of passengers is not classed as an active agent of the corporation in its active work of transporting passengers. And an assault made by such employees upon a fellow passenger on a train does not fall within the rule which makes the carrier’s liability to the passenger assaulted that of an insurer.</p> <p>6. A carrier of passengers is held to the highest degree of care, vigilance and precaution in making arrangements to guard against all dangers from whatever source arising which may naturally and according to the usual course of things be expected to occur.</p> <p>7. A conductor or person in charge of a railway train is inves