Trucking Accidents and Recoverable Damages
This accident occurred a while back, but it’s hit the news again due to a new lawsuit against the driver and the trucking company.
In summary, it was another of those trucking tragedies you hear about all the time…trucker who is overdoing it to get his job done more quickly causes horrific accident.
In this case 6 people were killed and more badly injured. Sadly, not only had this driver driven for 65 hours with only a 12 hour break after the first 50, but he was apparently on narcotics at the same time. And of course, he tried to fudge his reports afterword. There’s a saying that it’s not the crime, but the cover-up, that gets you. In this case, it will be the crime AND the cover-up.
In TN you may apparently list out how much money you want, whereas in NC we are limited to pleading amounts “not to exceed” or “in excess of” certain threshold amounts depending on the court you desire (Superior or District). In the TN case the victims are asking for $2.5 million in compensatory damages and $10 million in punitive damages.
For the uninitiated, compensatory damages are to pay back the victim for their financial losses resulting from the incident. Medical expenses, lost wages, and pain and suffering are the traditional big three. In wrongful death cases the heirs may also recover loss of companionship and future earnings. Punitive damages, on the other hand, are not (exactly) based on compensatory damages; this category is meant to punish the behavior that led to the incident and to hopefully give pause to the next person who is considering such behavior. In North Carolina punitive damages are in one way influenced statutorily by the amount of compensatory damages. They are capped at the greater of $250,000 or three times the compensatory damages. To me, that’s absolute BS. But it’s the law. However, there is one gloriously fair exception to that limitation, and that is for punitive damages from auto accident claims that came about due to driving while intoxicated. I love that one.
If you were killed in an auto accident, how much money do you think your family should get? Do you think punitive damages should be limited? How do you feel about the DWI exception? This is stuff I like to talk about. Let me know your thoughts. And of course, if you have an injury claim, holla!