Wakilii

Gatere v Lennan and Others (Civil Cases Nos. 917 and 992 of 1949)

East African Court of Appeal · [1951] EACA 339 · 1951 Judgment for Defendant AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
First instance civil suits under Fatal Accidents Ordinance consolidated for trial
Decision
Both plaintiffs' claims dismissed; no damages awarded

Observed later treatment

No later-treatment classification is recorded for this judgment.

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Holding

The court dismissed both actions, finding that the motor cycle was being driven without lights at night, which was the primary and effective cause of the fatal collision. The defendant's speed of approximately 45 miles per hour was not excessive in the circumstances, and his position on the crown of the road did not constitute negligence where he could not see the unlighted motor cycle until too late. The deceased passenger was barred from recovery under the principle volenti non fit injuria, being saddled with the driver's negligence.

Outcome

Both plaintiffs' claims dismissed; no damages awarded

Facts

On the night of 9-10 April 1949, a motor cycle carrying driver Solomon Gideon and passenger John Jeremiah collided with a motor car driven by the defendant on the Nanyuki-Nyeri Road. Both occupants of the motor cycle were killed. The plaintiffs, as beneficiaries under the Fatal Accidents Ordinance, sued claiming the defendant was driving at excessive speed and suddenly moved to the wrong side of the road. The defendant contended the motor cycle was being driven without lights, which he failed to see until too late to avoid collision. The accident occurred on a straight, dry road with moonlight. The car was travelling at approximately 45 miles per hour with headlights on. Evidence from the defendant's passenger and a police constable established the motor cycle had no lights. Inspector Higginson's examination of the scene confirmed the motor cycle's lights were not functioning at the time of impact. The car was on the crown of the road when it struck the motor cycle, which was on its correct left side but not at the extreme left.

Issues

  1. Whether the defendant was negligent in driving at excessive speed or on the wrong side of the road.
  2. Whether the absence of lights on the motor cycle was the predominant and effective cause of the accident.
  3. Whether the deceased passenger could recover damages despite the negligence of the driver under whose control he travelled.

Orders

  • Both actions dismissed.
  • Costs awarded to the defendant.

Rules and key headnotes

Negligence — Causation — Predominant and Effective Cause
Where a motor cycle is driven without lights at night and collides with an oncoming vehicle, the absence of lights constitutes the primary and effective cause of the accident, applying the test of what was the predominant and effective cause from a broad and common-sense point of view.
Negligence — Standard of Care — Speed on Highway
A speed of 45 miles per hour on a straight, dry road at night with no apparent traffic ahead does not constitute excessive or negligent driving.
Negligence — Traffic Rules — Obligation to Keep Left
The common law obligation to keep to the left of the road arises only when there is other traffic either overtaking or passing, and this is confined to cases where the driver knows or ought to know of such traffic; a driver is entitled to travel on the crown of the road until an approaching vehicle is seen or ought to have been seen.
Negligence — Res Ipsa Loquitur — Applicability
The fact that a vehicle is not on its correct side of the road at the moment of collision does not establish res ipsa loquitur where the driver could not see an approaching unlighted vehicle until too late to avoid the accident.
Volenti Non Fit Injuria — Passenger Liability for Driver's Negligence
A passenger in a vehicle is saddled with the negligence of the driver under the maxim volenti non fit injuria and cannot recover damages where the driver's negligence was the effective cause of the accident.

Legislation cited (2)

  • Fatal Accidents Ordinance Cap. 9
  • Traffic Ordinance s.49(a)

Cases cited (3)

  • Yorkshire Dale Steamship Co v Minister of War Transport [1942] AC 691
  • Nuttall v Pickering [1913] 1 KB 14
  • Patel v Lewin (10 EACA 36)

Full judgment

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The original judgment as reported. Read the original PDF before relying on any passage.

Gatere v Lennan and Others (Civil Cases Nos. 917 and 992 of 1949) [1951] EACA 339 (1 January 1951)
Source: this page presents Wakilii’s issue analysis and metadata for a publicly reported Ugandan judgment. Any AI-generated summary is marked as such. Judgment text is sourced from the Uganda Legal Information Institute (ulii.org). Wakilii is not affiliated with ULII.