accident

Is the one who dies in a car accident a martyr (shaheed)?

Praise be to Allaah.

It is proven in a number of hadeeths that the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said that the one who dies by drowning, or because of the plague or a stomach disease (diarrhoea) is a martyr. So the one who dies of the plague is a martyr, the one who dies of a stomach disease is a martyr, the one who drowns is a martyr, the one who is crushed by a falling wall is a martyr, the one who is killed for the sake of Allah is a martyr, the one who dies for the sake of Allah is a martyr, and there are a number of others who are martyrs. 

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This is by the grace of Allah, so that this ummah will have an advantage in terms of great reward, but the best of them are those who are martyred for the sake of Allah, who are killed for the sake of Allah. They are the best, and they are not to be washed (ghusl), and the funeral prayer is not to be offered for them, for they are alive with their Lord and given provision. Martyrs other than those who were martyred for the sake of Allah, such as those who died of a stomach disease or the plague, or those who were killed by falling walls or drowned, are to be washed and the funeral prayer is to be offered for them. Included with them are those who die in vehicle rollovers and car crashes; they are likened to the one who is crushed beneath a falling wall, and there is the hope that they will have the status of martyrdom, but they are to be washed and the funeral prayer is to offered for them, as is done for those who die of stomach diseases or drowning. End quote. 

Shaykh ‘Abd al-‘Azeez ibn Baaz (may Allah have mercy on him) 

Fataawa Noor ‘ala al-Darb, 3/1426 

Does he have to offer expiation for accidental killing if he struck them with his car and his wife died?

I have a friend who was driving his car with his wife beside him. Suddenly another car struck them on the side where his wife was sitting, and she died instantly. Please note that he was not driving any faster than 50 kph, and that the cause of the accident was the other driver who hit them. Does my friend have to offer expiation for killing accidentally?consequences of not reporting an accident at work

If your friend was not at fault and did not cause the accident in any way, then he does not have to do anything, either paying diyah (blood money) or offering expiation. Expiation must be offered by the other driver who was at fault, and his male relatives must pay the diyah (such as his father, his paternal uncles, his brothers and his nephews). If they were both at fault, then the diyah must be paid by both sets of male relatives (each according to his proportion of blame), and each of them must offer expiation in full. 

Ibn Qudaamah (may Allaah have mercy on him) said in al-Mughni (12/116): 

Whoever is partly to blame for killing must offer expiation; it must be offered by him and by everyone else who shares the blame with him. This is the view of the majority of scholars, including al-Hasan, ‘Ikrimah, al-Nakha’i, al-Thawri, Maalik, al-Shaafa’i, and the ashaab al-ra’i. End quote. 

There are three main reasons for the mistake that may have happened in this case: 

Either it happened because of carelessness in maintenance of the car, such as the brakes etc.

Or the problem may have been with the driver, such as if he was driving the car when he needed to sleep, or was distracted by something that kept him from focusing fully on driving

Or it was the result of failing to obey the traffic rules. 

Determining the mistake and who is at fault is something that must be left to the experts in that field. 

Shaykh Ibn ‘Uthaymeen (may Allaah have mercy on him) said, in his essay Ahkaam Hawaadith al-Sayaaraat (Rulings on auto accidents) that if one of the passengers who got in the car with the driver by his own free will is injured, then one of the following four scenarios must apply to this accident: 

-1-

It happened as the result of aggressive action on the part of the driver, such as if he was going at a speed which caused the accident, or he slammed on the brakes for no reason and the accident happened as a result. 

-2-

It happened as the result of negligence on the part of the driver. The difference is that aggressive action means doing something that is not justified, whereas negligence means failing to do something that is required, such as failing to close doors properly, or to fill the tires properly with air, or to fix something that needs fixing, and the accident happened as the result of that negligence. 

In these two cases, expiation must be offered by the driver. The expiation is freeing a slave for each human life protected by sharee’ah that was lost; if he cannot do that then he must fast for two consecutive months and not break the fast except for a legitimate shar’i excuse such as travelling, sickness and the like. Compensation for any property damaged or destroyed and diyah for the lives lost must also be paid by his male kin. 

-3-

It happened as the result of the driver swerving to avoid danger, such as if something was coming towards him which he feared might hit him, or if someone pulled out from the right or the left in such a way that he could not stop, so he swerved to avoid that danger, and the accident happened. 

-4-

If happened as the result of no cause on his part, such as if one of his tires blew or a bridge collapsed beneath him and he could not tell that there was something wrong with it. 

In these two cases, he does not have to offer any expiation or pay any compensation, because in the first case he was doing what he is required to do of trying to avoid danger, so he was doing the right thing, and no ground (of complaint) can there be against those who do good (cf. al-Tawbah 9:91).  

In the second case he was doing the right thing and did not commit any act of aggression or negligence, so he does not have to do anything, because he did not cause the accident. End quote. 

This essay was published in the official journal of the Imam Muhammad ibn Sa’ood Islamic University, 12 Sha’baan 1409 AH 

Shaykh Ibn Baaz (may Allaah have mercy on him) was asked concerning a man whose car rolled over and his wife died: does he have to offer any expiation or not? 

He replied: 

If you were not negligent in your driving or in taking care of your car, and the accident happened when the state of your car, your driving and your health were all normal, then you do not have to do anything because there is no proof that you caused the accident. But if it is proven that you fell short with regard to what is mentioned above, then you have to offer expiation, by freeing a believing slave; if you cannot do that, then you must fast for two consecutive months, because Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning): 

“It is not for a believer to kill a believer except (that it be) by mistake; and whosoever kills a believer by mistake, (it is ordained that) he must set free a believing slave and a compensation (blood money, i.e. Diya) be given to the deceased’s family unless they remit it. If the deceased belonged to a people at war with you and he was a believer, the freeing of a believing slave (is prescribed); and if he belonged to a people with whom you have a treaty of mutual alliance, compensation (blood money — Diya) must be paid to his family, and a believing slave must be freed. And whoso finds this (the penance of freeing a slave) beyond his means, he must fast for two consecutive months in order to seek repentance from Allaah. And Allaah is Ever All‑Knowing, All‑Wise”

[al-Nisa’ 4:92]

Fataawa Islamiyyah, 3/358-359 ,car accident lawyer

She lost her virginity in childhood due to an accident – should she conceal that from her husband?

There is a Muslim woman who had an accident when she was small, and lost her virginity as a result. She has got married but the marriage has not been consummated yet. In another case, a woman had the same accident and now religiously-committed brothers want to propose marriage to her. They are both confused as to what is better in their case. Should the one who is married tell her husband before he consummates the marriage or should she keep quiet about it? Should the one who is not married yet conceal this matter lest the news spread and people think badly of her? It happened when she was small and not yet accountable. Or is this regarded as deceiving and cheating? Should she tell the one who proposes to her or not, for the sake of getting married?.

There is no shar’i reason why she should not keep quiet about it, then if he asks her after consummation, she can tell him the truth. And Allaah is the source of strength. May Allaah send blessing and peace upon our Prophet Muhammad and his family and companions.

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Two cars collided and three people died. What does he have to do?

What is the ruling on someone who had a traffic accident and three people died in the car that hit him, and the accident was not deliberate on the part of either driver?

Traffic accidents should be referred to the experts in that field and eyewitnesses who saw what happened; this brief description is not enough. 

If the experts rule that one of the two parties was negligent or aggressive, such as if he drove in the opposite direction or he cut off the other driver, or he was careless in changing tires which led to his car turning over and hitting the other car, then he is the negligible party and is liable for the deaths of others and the destruction of property. There may have been negligence on both sides, in which case each party is liable for damage caused to the other, whether that be damage caused to people or property, to the extent to which they were negligent. 

The Islamic Fiqh Council issued a statement on traffic accidents in which it says: 

Accidents involving vehicles are subject to the Islamic shar’i rulings on criminal acts, even though they are usually caused by errors. The driver is responsible for damage caused to the other person, whether that is physical harm suffered by him or damage to his property. After deciding who is at fault and the extent of damage caused, he is not to be absolved of blame except in the following cases: 

1 – If the accident happened as the result of something beyond his control and he could not avoid it.

2 – If the damage is caused primarily by the one to whom the damage is done.

3 – If the accident resulted from negligence or aggression on the part of another, and the other is to be deemed responsible. 

And they said: If the driver and the injured party both caused the accident, then each of them is liable for physical damage or damage to property caused to the other. 

Shaykh Ibn Baaz (may Allaah have mercy on him) was asked: There was an accident in which two cars crashed into one another. In one car there were two people, one of whom died. According to the police, the driver of the first car was 30% responsible, and the driver of the other car was 70% responsible. With regard to the kafaarah (expiation), should the driver of the first car fast for two consecutive months or for a time proportionate to the degree to which he is to blame, as is the case with diyah (blood money)? 

He replied: If two or more people are jointly responsible for killing someone by mistake, then each of them has to offer expiation independently, because expiations cannot be split between individuals, as the scholars have stated, 

Fataawa Islamiyyah, 3/360 

The Shaykh was also asked: 

When my father was driving a car, he crashed into another car and the driver of the other car died, may Allaah have mercy on him. The police confirmed that the accident was entirely the fault of the deceased and the family of the deceased agreed to forgo the diyah (blood money), may Allaah reward them with good. My question now is: Does my father have to offer the expiation of fasting for two consecutive months or not? 

He replied: If the situation is as you describe then your father does not have to offer any expiation because he is not to blame and he cannot be described as a killer. 

Fataawa Islamiyyah, 3/356. 

The point of quoting these fatwas is so that you may know the importance of following the rulings of the experts and eyewitnesses and finding out the details so that it may be determined who is to blame and to what degree. 

The fact that the accident was not caused by a deliberate action does not mean that the blood money or expiation can be waived. burnetti pa

And Allaah knows best.