An unintended, unexpected injury to the human body caused by an accident or by ordinary means that resulted in an unanticipated outcome.
For the purposes of a legal liability policy, reckless behaviour that results in an expected but unintended bodily injury is not accidental; the injury must be both unexpected and unintended from the insured’s perspective. Accidental injury usually happens at a specific time and place, but the concept of the slow accident has emerged, and conditions like deep vein thrombosis must be considered in light of policy definitions and court decisions. A person injured under a car when a jack slips has suffered an accidental injury under a personal accident policy, but back strain from an uneventful tyre change lacks fortuity and is thus not accidental.