Greenville workers’ comp and personal injury attorneys from Ricci Law Firm, PA, won an $800,000 verdict for their client. Thomas Kandler, one of our North Carolina Law Tigers’ was the attorney overseeing the case. The case involved the rider’s motorcycle and the at-fault driver’s vehicle when the defendant was texting and driving when they rear-ended the rider on the motorcycle.
The rider was stopped behind another car on their Harley-Davidson Sportster when they were impacted and smashed between the vehicle in front and the at-fault driver behind the. The rider sustained numerous injuries, including a broken tibia, two bones in the spine, and two ribs. The tibia break required a titanium rod which later got infected. Due to that, a second surgery is scheduled to remove the rod, which will require extensive physical therapy as part of the recovery.
The rider had moved to North Carolina one month earlier with their parents from Arizona.
To cover the injuries and damages caused by the accident, the driver of the car had a $30,000 policy with Dairyland, which was used early on to cover the injured rider’s medical bills and other things related to the accident. The rider had a $50,000 policy with Progressive since moving to North Carolina. In addition, the parents of the rider had a $250,000 Arizona policy through State Farm. However, there was a dispute with coverage of the Arizona policies. Arizona allows intra-policy stacking but only per insurance company. If the rider’s parents had policies with three separate companies, this would not have been a problem, but because they were all with State Farm, only one policy would apply per Arizona law.
Thomas Kandler argued that, based on notice and minimum contacts with North Carolina, the policy should have been re-written under North Carolina law already, and North Carolina law should apply.
State Farm hired North Carolina counsel to provide a coverage opinion. Coverage was eventually resolved in favor of the rider.
“We are pleased with the outcome of the case on behalf of our client. This will help cover their medical cost and recovery,” said Thomas. “We continue to provide the best legal care for our clients and ensure they receive the compensation they deserve.”
We Care About Riders at Law Tigers
Law Tigers is a nationwide group of lawyers who fight for fair compensation for riders who are injured in accidents. You never ride alone with Law Tigers; we’ve got your back. If you or a loved one has been injured in a motorcycle accident, give us a call at 1-888-863-7216. We’ll walk you through every step of the process and get you back on the road whole.
