Motorcyclist Breaks Elbow and Hits Head ($113,328)
A 25 year old man was injured while riding his motorcycle, when a vehicle pulled out in front of him and caused a collision. The other driver ran a stop sign and failed to yield the right of way to the plaintiff. The other driver admitted that he never saw the plaintiff until the motorcycle crashed into the car and plaintiff went flying through the air.
The plaintiff suffered a head injury, fractured right olecranon process (elbow), and soft tissue neck and back injuries. Surgery to repair the fracture using hardware was required. He was in a sling for several weeks, and went through painful physical therapy to regain motion of his arm. He received chiropractic care for his headaches and neck and back injuries.
His head injury resulted in mild brain injury. His primary complaint from this was loss of ability to concentrate and express himself, and problems with short-term memory. This caused him difficulties in his work as a sales representative at a tire store. Although he suffered lowered commissions and a demotion as a result of his brain injury, his employer was unwilling to provide the necessary support to establish this part of his claim.
The plaintiff was without no-fault nor underinsured motorist coverage, therefore the only available proceeds were from the at-fault driver’s insurer. Plaintiff’s medical expenses were in excess of $43,000. The insurer offered top dollar of $75,000 of its $100,000 policy limits. Denise Fullerton commenced litigation on behalf of Plaintiff. The defense requested that the selected mediator perform a case evaluation, rather than a mediation hearing. That evaluation came back at $183,497.03. The defense promptly offered to pay insurance policy limits of $100,000, which the Plaintiff chose to accept. Denise also convinced the defense to pay interest and costs, in addition to the policy limits, to resolve the claim short of trial. The total settlement was $113,328.12.
