Groves v Amp Fire & General Insurance Co (NZ) Ltd - [1990] 2 NZLR 408

Insurance — Accident insurance — Death by accident — Fatal reaction to anaesthetic — Deceased was insured under personal disability policy which included cover for death by accident — Deceased died as a result of an adverse reaction to an anaesthetic administered before a hysterectomy operation — Expert evidence was given that the deceased's reaction to the anaesthetic was unexpected and could not have been reasonably predicted beforehand; and that such a reaction occurred in about 1 in 5000 administrations of which about 4% terminated fatally — Whether a death which had been caused by an unexpected and rare adverse reaction to a properly administered anaesthetic was a death by accident — Whether deceased's decision to have the operation was the proximate cause of death — Whether deceased had cover under the policy. — Appeal from [1990] 1 NZLR 122