Mansfield v Weetabix [1997] EWCA Civ 1352 Court of Appeal

The defendant drove his lorry into a shop owned by the claimant. At the time of the incident the defendant was had a malignant insulinoma which resulted in him being in a hyperglycaemic state although he was unaware of this. On the day of the crash he had also been involved in two minor incidents.

Held:

The defendant was not in breach of duty

Leggatt LJ

"In my judgment the standard of care that Mr Tarleton was obliged to show in these circumstances was that which is to be expected of a reasonably competent driver unaware that he is or may be suffering from a condition that impairs his ability to drive. To apply an objective standard in a way that did not take account of Mr Tarleton’s condition would be to impose strict liability. But that is not the law."

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