Vicarious liability in a hospital context under Indian law means that a private hospital is liable for the negligence of its doctors if:

• A The doctor is a full-time employee (servant) of the hospital; the hospital is vicariously liable under the master-servant principle for acts done in the course of employment ✓
• B The doctor is a visiting consultant paid per case; the hospital has no vicarious liability as the doctor is an independent contractor
• C The hospital is vicariously liable for all doctors who operate within its premises regardless of employment status under Consumer Protection Act 2019
• D Vicarious liability applies only to government hospitals and not private hospitals under Indian law

Explanation

Vicarious liability is the principle that an employer (master) is liable for the negligent acts of an employee (servant) done in the ordinary course of employment. For a hospital to be vicariously liable for a doctor's negligence, the doctor must be an employee (full-time, salaried, under the hospital's control). A visiting consultant operating as an independent contractor, bringing their own patients and exercising independent professional judgement, does not create vicarious liability for the hospital. This distinction has been upheld in Indian courts including Savita Garg v. National Heart Institute. The Consumer Protection Act applies regardless but does not override the servant-contractor distinction for vicarious liability.

Reference: The Essentials of Forensic Medicine and Toxicology (Narayan Reddy), 34th ed.

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Written and medically reviewed by the StethoPrep medical team.