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Civil Law (Wrongs) Act 2002
5Protection of good samaritans from liability
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5 Protection of good samaritans from liability
(1) A good samaritan does not incur personal civil liability for an act done
or omission made honestly and without recklessness in assisting, or
giving advice about the assistance to be given to, a person who is
apparently—
(a) injured or at risk of being injured; or
(b) in need of emergency medical assistance.
(2) However, the protection does not apply if—
(a) the liability falls within the ambit of a scheme of compulsory
third-party motor vehicle insurance; or
(b) the good samaritan’s capacity to exercise appropriate care and
skill was, at the relevant time, significantly impaired by a
recreational drug.
Example—scheme of compulsory third-party motor vehicle insurance
the scheme under the Motor Accident Injuries Act 2019
(3) Despite subsection (2) (b), if a good samaritan administers the drug
known as naloxone, honestly and without recklessness, to a person
apparently suffering from an overdose of an opioid drug for the
purpose of resuscitating the person, the protection under
subsection (1) applies even if the good samaritan’s capacity to
exercise appropriate care and skill was, at the time of administering
the drug, impaired by a recreational drug.
Examples—opioid drugs
• heroin
• methadone
• morphine
Good samaritans Part 2.1
good samaritan means—
(a) a person who, acting without expectation of payment or other
consideration, comes to the aid of a person who is apparently—
(i) injured or at risk of being injured; or
(ii) in need of emergency medical assistance; or
(b) a medically qualified person who, acting without expectation of
payment or other consideration, gives advice by telephone or
another form of telecommunication about the treatment of a
person who is apparently—
(i) injured or at risk of being injured; or
(ii) in need of emergency medical assistance.
medically qualified—a person is medically qualified if the person—
(a) is a doctor; or
(b) has professional qualifications in a field of health care that are
recognised under an Act; or
(c) works, or has worked, as a member of the ambulance service or
in another paramedical capacity.