Rejection of benefits from the mandatory accident insurance in case of self-harm while in a state of incapacity to judge

Facts

I., born in 1969, was employed at Hospital X. since August 1, 2009 and was therefore mandatorily insured against accidents with AXA Insurance AG (AXA). On December 1, 2009, he was admitted to Hospital Y. with a mixed intoxication and multi-organ failure. On July 4, 2010, I. had reported the incident to AXA. AXA denied a claim for benefits from the mandatory accident insurance in a ruling dated January 28, 2011. The Social Insurance Court of the Canton of Basel-Stadt upheld the appeals filed against this. AXA then filed a public law appeal.

Considerations

The Federal Supreme Court states that a claim for benefits from the mandatory accident insurance also exists in the case of suicide or self-harm committed in a state of complete incapacity to judge, only if the criteria of the accident definition are met. The legislator did not intend to equate every suicide or suicide attempt with an accident, but only those committed in a state of complete incapacity to judge.

In the present case, the criterion of suddenness is not met, as the mixed…