A legal action resulting from a vehicle accident caused by a sudden medical emergency may require showing that a driver failed to take care of his or her health condition. Individuals with diabetes, for example, need to regularly monitor and control their blood sugar levels.
A diabetic failing to maintain healthy glucose levels may experience unexpected blackouts. When a motorist has an awareness of the condition, he or she must use reasonable caution to control it while driving.
Proving that a motorist failed to treat a medical condition
When planning trips, a duty of care to protect other individuals could require eating meals and taking medications before operating a motor vehicle. A sudden seizure or medical episode that occurs while driving could result in a catastrophic accident.
Filing a legal claim may include allegations of a motorist’s negligence in treating a serious medical issue. A court may ask for records that indicate a driver’s condition in addition to evidence proving how his or her carelessness caused a collision.
Asserting a medical condition did not cause an accident
Pennsylvania’s laws recognize the “sudden medical emergency” doctrine. According to Claims Journal, a driver may assert that similarepisodes previously occurred, and they did not result in an accident. The court may ask whether he or she experienced any unusual symptoms or how a physician has recommended driving.
A defendant may provide an expert or witness who can testify that the driver’s medical condition could not have caused the accident. An expert may also provide medical statistics to prove the likelihood that a sudden emergency did not occur quickly enough to lose control of the car. Personal witnesses may testify that the individual took care of his or her condition regularly and as prescribed.
Filing a legal claim to recover
An individual alleged to have caused avehicle collisionby not treating a medical condition may face liability with proof of a foreseeable episode. An unforeseeable or random medical event, however, may absolve a motorist of responsibility for the accident.
