Plaintiff was a 19 year old college student aspiring to be an emergency services responder, who was a passenger in the automobile of an underage driver who had been drinking at a party. The driver lost control of his vehicle, struck a parked car causing his vehicle to roll over. Plaintiff was immediately rendered unconscious, removed from the vehicle by ambulance and taken to the hospital where he was diagnosed with fractures of his right shoulder and pelvis, a subdural hematoma and post-concussive syndrome. After an extended hospital stay, Plaintiff treated for four years for ongoing right shoulder pain and neurological complaints, including loss of concentration and poor memory, which affected Plaintiff’s ultimate goal of being an EMT.
After settling with the tortfeasor for a substantial sum, Plaintiff brought an underinsured motorist claim against his insurance carrier. The claim representative attempted to settle the claim, but Plaintiff, dissatisfied with the offer, filed a bad faith complaint against the carrier and the claim representative handling the UIM claim. Lori Miller successfully obtained dismissal of the claim representative and all bad faith allegations against the carrier.
Thereafter, the case proceeded to a 12 member Philadelphia jury to assess the Plaintiff’s damages. At trial, Claire Neiger was able to effectively impeach Plaintiff’s credibility regarding the extent of his injuries. The jury only deliberated for an hour and a half before finding that Plaintiff’s injuries did not exceed the tortfeasor’s policy limits resulting in a defense verdict for the UIM carrier.
