Facts: A 68 y.o. woman was traveling by an ambulette car to a doctor appointment. Due to negligence of the ambulette driver, the car hit a bus that was traveling in front of him. The woman did not fasten her seat belt, therefore the hit threw her against the hardback of the seat in front of her.
Injuries and consequences: The plaintiff’s knees were injured during the hit. A knee joint replacement surgery was performed on her left leg. After surgery, the plaintiff moved with a walker for three months and now she walks with a wand. Before the surgery the woman led an active lifestyle: she visited her children and looked after her grandchildren. After surgery her activity has been minimized and now most of the time she stays home. This caused her to develop depression and now the woman is being treated by a psychologist.
Arguments of the defendant: Injuries were obtained only because the woman was without a seat belt, therefore she took responsibility for the possible consequences of the accident. The fact that the plaintiff ignored the law on seat belts releases the defendant from paying compensation to her.
Our arguments: The seat belts law applies to drivers and passengers of conventional cars. An ambulette is a specialized vehicle for the transportation of sick people. This imposes additional responsibility on its driver for the safety of passengers. Taking into consideration the age and physical condition of passengers in such vehicle, the driver of an ambulette must at least explain to them how to use the seat belts properly before starting to move. Under the right scenario, the driver of the ambulette must check, and if necessary, personally fasten passengers, who by definition need help. Our expert surgeon showed how serious the surgery was and how severe its consequences are for the elderly. He also expressed his opinion that a traumatic arthritis of both legs can occur in the future.
Result: Before passing a verdict, the insurance company of the ambulette decided to not take a risk and after intensive negotiations agreed to pay the defendant $420,000. After hours of negotiations, we managed to reduce the amount of our client’s debt to Medicaid and Medicare from $84,000 to $18,000. The plaintiff received the remaining amount of money.
