Legal Question in Personal Injury in New York
My mother is in her 70�s and lives in New York. She was injured in a motor vehicle accident while driving her vehicle in Indiana. The accident involved two licensed motor carriers: the truck that hit her car was leased from Penske by a moving company in New York; the driver of the truck was the moving company's employee. The truck weighed in excess of 25,000 lbs.
At the scene of the accident, the driver supplied Penske insurance information, and the lease their lawyers provided indicates that liability protection was purchased through the lease. However, the attorneys for Penske are referencing the Graves Amendment as a reason for motion to dismiss, stating that a rental company cannot be held accountable for an accident in which they (Penske) were not deemed "negligent".
The attorney we retained apparently never handled this type of case before (he�s a one-man operation), and did not want to move forward with the case. Instead, he recently went to the judge and recused himself.
If Penske agreed to provide insurance coverage under the terms of the lease, and their policy contains the MCS-90 endorsement, are they not still liable under the Federal regulations for minimum levels financial responsibility? My mother was not hospitalized. However, she suffered from cervical disk herniation (evident on an MRI), underwent treatment for it, and continues to suffer chronic pain. Also, she incurred expenses related to the extensive damage to her vehicle, including renting a vehicle to return to New York, transporting the vehicle back to New York, and renting a vehicle until hers was returned.
The driver of the truck disappeared shortly after being served, and the moving company is no longer in service. Also, because proceedings were already started, we�ve been unable to find an attorney to take over the case. What are our options at this point?
4 Answers from Attorneys
You need an attorney in Indiana.
Please contact me to discuss this matter. The fact of the matter is that this is an action that can be litigated in New York, and you have viable claims against the moving company and the employee. Depending upon the circumstances of the case there may be an exception to the Graves Amendment that allows you to proceed against Penske. However, the moving company should have other insurance that applies, and there is also a potential claim for uninsured/underinsured motorist benefits that you can pursue.
First, you don not need only an attorney in Indiana. Second, the Act refers to the limitation on financial exposure that the trunk rental company is exposed to. They are capped to a certain limit. They cannot totally get out of providing coverge for the loss. That defeats the purpose of having insurance. You would have to also find out answers to 2 questions: 1) is there any excess or umbrella coverage available or can we locate the driver and he perhaps has insurance of his own and 2) does your mom have SUM coverage that may be available to her through her insurance. We would also need to evaluate her injuries to see if she has a viable claim. I would be happy to discuss your mom's options and rights. For an absolutely FREE consultation please give me a call at 347-702-4133 or email me at [email protected]
Where does your mother reside currently? If she is in New York and had a New York tag travelling through Indiana, you had better move with her case expeditiously through an experienced NY attorney; preferrably one also licensed in Federal Court.
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