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Foreseeability is now established as an important limiting factor on causation. A defendant is only liable for harm of the type or kind that was reasonably foreseeable as the consequence of their negligent conduct. The liability for foreseeable harm exists even if the likelihood of the harm occurring is not very high.
It is no defence for a defendant to show that the precise manner of the harm occurring was not foreseeable. Nor is it a defence if the harm caused to a particular plaintiff is greater because that plaintiff suffers from some personal vulnerability.
The application of these principles allows the courts considerable discretion and it can be difficult to predict with certainty the outcome of particular cases.
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