Case Example #2: Truck vs. Bike

Our Client:
Our client was a prominent member of the community and self-employed business owner. He was an avid mountain climber and competitive outdoorsman, holding numerous mountain climbing records.

The Facts:
While training for a local bicycle competition, he was hit from behind by an uninsured truck traveling 55 miles per hour. The driver of the truck claimed that our client had turned left in front of him, causing the crash. Our client was hurt so badly, he couldn’t remember the accident.

His Injuries:
Our client’s injuries were severe, including damage to both knees (surgery on one, required future knee replacements on both), shoulder (requiring a shoulder replacement), a broken pelvis, a broken hip, etc. His doctors stated that he will never climb mountains or ride bicycles competitively again.

Our Client's Problem:
The at-fault driver had no insurance, so we made an uninsured motorist claim with our client’s insurance company. They claimed he turned his bike in front of the truck, that the truck was driving slowly, and the point of impact was in the middle of the lane. Due to his injuries, our client could not remember the collision making it difficult to dispute the testimony of the uninsured driver.

The Resolution:
We retained an accident reconstructionist to investigate. He concluded that, given the damage to the bicycle, where the bicycle and our client ended up, and our client’s injuries, the bicycle could not have been turning at the moment of impact. At arbitration, we got the defendant’s expert to admit that our expert’s opinions were valid, and that if the collision happened as testified to by our expert, the uninsured motorist must have been speeding.

The Result:
We recovered the maximum amount of money allowed by law, proving over $500,000 in damages.