DEATH AFTER ACCIDENT

Taranaki Daily News, 12 July 1933, Page 7

DEATH AFTER ACCIDENT

INSURANCE LIABILITY DENIED.

WEAK HEART ALLEGED CAUSE.

By Telegraph—Press Association. Auckland, Last Night.

On February 1 a cat driven by Louis Arnoldson, a well-known city merchant, struck a lorry and Arnoldson died shortly afterwards of injuries. An action to recover £2OOO in respect of accident insurance policies was begun before Mr. Justice Reed to-day. The plaintiffs are the deceased’s executors and the defendants are Lloyds and the South British Insurance Companies. Counsel for the plaintiffs said that they claimed that deceased died from con craton resulting from the accident. His Honour: I- see. that there is a suggestion of heart disease. Counsel: We still say that death was the result of concussion. Evidence was given that immediately before the accident the deceased passed a car on his correct side and then seemed to swerve toward the footpath, passing on the inside of another car and crashing into a stationary lorry. When reached by helpers deceased’s left hand was on the brake. Other evidence was given to show that deceased was in good health. The defence is that death was not caused by injury received in the accident but by disease of the heart.

Mr. A. H. Johnstone for plaintiffs submitted he had established a prima facie case of accident.

Mr. J. B. Johnston said the defence would suggest that at the time of the accident Arnoldson was not in control of his car. He also submitted that deceased had a heart seizure. Evidence would be given to the effect that earlier that morning he had complained of feeling unwell. Lloyd’s policy was known as a comprehensive policy, counsel continued, accidental death being only one of the risks covered. It had to be proved that death was solely due to accident. The South British policy was a straight-out accident policy. It would be proved that Arnoldson had suffered from a badly diseased heart, and it was held that this was the sole cause, or at least a contributing cause of death. If this were so the insurance companies were not liable under the policies. Two men who had a business appointment with deceased before the accident gave evidence that deceased had said he was not feling well. Dr. Murray said he had made a post mortem examination of Amoldson’s body. The face wounds were not serious, and would not have required a severe blow to cause them. With regard to the internal organs the heart was exceedingly fatty and oadly diseased. There was no sign of any fracture of the skull or injury to the brain. Death was due in his opinion to fatty degeneration of the heart .following shock. There was no suggestion of concussion. The hearing was adjourned.