Harry Potter and the Inevitable Compensation Claim

You have to have been living under a very large rock not to have heard about the Harry Potter series. Charting the adventures of the eponymous boy wizard as he masters magic and battles the evil Lord Voldemort, both the books and films have proved popular the world over. However, if you ever read or watched any of these you will be all too aware of just how dangerous being a witch or wizard is in the world of Harry Potter. The blur between the world of muggles – that is normal people like you and me – and the so-called wizarding world is often a hazy one, especially as it is specifically said that a lot of muggle technology doesn’t work in Hogwarts and indeed around magic as a whole.

However, when magic is brought into the world of muggles it can cause a lot of trouble. Dangerous trouble.  And you know how much some muggles like taking out compensation claims…

So what sort of magically inclined incidents might somebody try and claim for?

Magical creature-related injuries

Much like dangerous dogs, any magical creatures should be kept firmly under control when out and about; even if they’re generally benign you would definitely want to keep an eye on them. Taking your baby hippogriff for a walk is all very well and good, but what if it gets excitable and accidentally mauls someone by jumping up at them?

Spells gone wrong

Whether it’s because they were cast by an inexperienced wizard or pure bad luck (something that wizards can influence, of course), spells going wrong would be a very real danger if the two worlds collided. Spells can achieve an almost limitless amount of different outcomes, so just imagine what would happen if one messed up.

Artifact malfunctions

Much like spells, faulty magical items would be another big and potentially unpredictable liability. Old, broken or badly made, you wouldn’t want some hapless muggle stumbling across an artifact, inadvertently using it then trying to desperately consult a personal injury claim calculator in order to find out how much they could get for having their legs quite literally turned to jelly.

Cultural misunderstandings

For wizards who have not had much contact with muggles and vice versa, any number of seemingly insignificant comments could result in a disagreement and thus perhaps damage – magical or otherwise – to property or even people. Whether this is intentional or not, the injured party is likely to want some kind of recompense.

Jennifer Johnston is a staunch Harry Potter fan, and reckons she would be sorted into Hufflepuff if the wizarding world were real.