Who Is Responsible For The Accident?

In a recent automobile settlement, attorneys for the three people who died in an automobile crash sued the employer of the negligent driver who caused the accident.

What was unusual about this case is that the negligent driver was NOT driving a company vehicle when he caused the crash. He was driving his personal vehicle.

But the negligent driver just finished an all-night drive for his employer, a moving company, and was taking the other workers home from the all-night moving job. This driver was noted to be extremely tired, falling asleep at the wheel of his personal car before the terrible collision occurred.

Through the discovery of facts process, it was determined that the negligent driver had driven far too many hours, clearly violating Federal Trucking guidelines for his profession.

The moving company resisted any responsibility by arguing their employee was off duty and the accident, while killing three innocent people in a head-on collision, had nothing to do with the employee-employer relationship.

However, shortly before the trial the lawyers for the insurance company and this moving company paid $1 million dollars to each of the three deceased’s estates, while still not admitting any responsibility. When this case began, the insurance company offered $25,000 for each of the three deceased’s estates. It took six years to get from the $25,000 to the $1 million per person settlement.

This case was to be heard in Chatham County State Court before Judge Derek White and was reported in the Fulton County Daily Report on Wednesday, March 8, 2023.