THE LAW OFFICES OF
BARRY G. DOYLE, P.C.
100 W MONROE ST.,
STE 2100
CHICAGO, IL 60603
PHONE: 312.263.1080
FAX: 312.263.0153
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Chicago Personal Injury Law Blog
Serving Chicago, Rockford, Aurora, and Surrounding Areas
Wednesday, October 1, 2008
Two Southern Illinois students killed by TV crew vehicle
Two Southern Illinois students, including one from the Chicago area, were killed when a vehicle being driven by a crew member for the Bret Michaels VH-1 reality TV show, "Rock of Love" crossed over the median on I-57 and struck them. The crew member apparently fell asleep behind the wheel, causing the crash.
One important point to understand in this kind of catastrophic accident is that the law makes the employer responsible for the negligence of the employees. This is known as vicarious liability. When there is a catastrophic car or truck accident, it is always important to determine as part of the investigation whether the driver was acting in the course of his employment and if so, who his employer was.
When some one gets into a car crash while they are on the job, their employer's commercial liability insurance policy is responsible for covering any injuries or deaths that result from the accident. This can provide substantial additional compensation for the victims of the car crash. Two examples:
My firm represented a woman who suffered a fractured hip in a car crash at O'Hare. The other driver worked for a large national bank and was picking a superior up at the airport. Because this was a business related trip, the negligence of the employee was covered by the employers $25 million commercial policy and not the $50,000 in coverage that the negligent employee had on his personal vehicle.
In another case, my firm represented a woman who was crossing the street in a wheelchair when she was hit by a car, suffering multiple injuries, including spinal fractures. The driver of the car that hit her was a pharmaceutical sales rep going to a sales call at a doctor's office. The client was able to recover significantly more compensation through the insurance policy for the pharamaceutical company than she would have through the sales rep's personal policy.
As part of every settlement where there are catastrophic injuries, we require proof that there was no employment-related activity at the time of the accident and that there was no additional insurance available.
Since the negligent driver in this case was clearly doing something employment-related at the time of the car crash, his employer's insurance policy will be forced to cover the injuries and wrongful death lawsuits that will result from this accident. The families of the deceased young ladies who were killed in this accident will be entitled to recover compensation for their economic losses, their loss of society, and their grief. Given the size of the company that employed the sleeping driver, this may be a rare case where the victims in a wringful death case are fully compensated.
One important point to understand in this kind of catastrophic accident is that the law makes the employer responsible for the negligence of the employees. This is known as vicarious liability. When there is a catastrophic car or truck accident, it is always important to determine as part of the investigation whether the driver was acting in the course of his employment and if so, who his employer was.
When some one gets into a car crash while they are on the job, their employer's commercial liability insurance policy is responsible for covering any injuries or deaths that result from the accident. This can provide substantial additional compensation for the victims of the car crash. Two examples:
My firm represented a woman who suffered a fractured hip in a car crash at O'Hare. The other driver worked for a large national bank and was picking a superior up at the airport. Because this was a business related trip, the negligence of the employee was covered by the employers $25 million commercial policy and not the $50,000 in coverage that the negligent employee had on his personal vehicle.
In another case, my firm represented a woman who was crossing the street in a wheelchair when she was hit by a car, suffering multiple injuries, including spinal fractures. The driver of the car that hit her was a pharmaceutical sales rep going to a sales call at a doctor's office. The client was able to recover significantly more compensation through the insurance policy for the pharamaceutical company than she would have through the sales rep's personal policy.
As part of every settlement where there are catastrophic injuries, we require proof that there was no employment-related activity at the time of the accident and that there was no additional insurance available.
Since the negligent driver in this case was clearly doing something employment-related at the time of the car crash, his employer's insurance policy will be forced to cover the injuries and wrongful death lawsuits that will result from this accident. The families of the deceased young ladies who were killed in this accident will be entitled to recover compensation for their economic losses, their loss of society, and their grief. Given the size of the company that employed the sleeping driver, this may be a rare case where the victims in a wringful death case are fully compensated.
Labels: Car crashes, wrongful death
posted by Barry Doyle at 4:47 AM
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