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Who Is Responsible When a Driver Blacks Out and Causes an Accident With Bodily Injuries?

This interesting legal issue is addressed by Clearwater, Florida car accident lawyer Jim Dodson.

Under Florida law, the operator of a motor vehicle may be held liable for damages when they negligently cause injury to another person in an accident. There are cases in which the driver of a car may claim a sudden loss of consciousness and the question arises as to whether that person may be guilty of negligence or whether they have a defense to that claim.

Florida does not recognize a defense of unexpected loss of consciousness, but it must be proven by the driver who caused the accident that it would apply to them.

In order to do that, the at-fault driver bears the burden of proof and evidence showing:

1. There was, in fact, a loss of consciousness or capacity suffered by the driver
2. The loss of consciousness or capacity happened before the collision
3. The loss of consciousness must have been sudden
4. The loss of consciousness was neither foreseen, nor foreseeable

Essentially, this comes down to an argument that the driver who caused the accident could not have reasonably foreseen they would have had this sudden loss of consciousness. Therefore, it is always very dependent upon the actual facts in the case.

For example, if there is proof the driver had not taken a required medication, or had not done what a reasonable person would do to prevent having a blackout or loss of consciousness from failing to eat, and then the defense may not exist.

Here's an example to illustrate my point.
John was driving down Court Street one evening when he suffered a heart attack, lost consciousness and crossed the median, crashing into Susan, causing serious bodily injuries. If John can show he actually lost consciousness before the accident, the sudden loss of consciousness defense will work in his favor and Susan will not recover her damages. If, however, John was driving down Court Street after a visit to his cardiologist and the doctor told him he had severe heart problems and shouldn't be driving because he could pass out at any moment, he'd have a difficult time using the defense. His cardiologist's warning would be reason for him to anticipate the loss of consciousness, and he would be found negligent.

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