An electrician, who suffered debilitating injuries when his pick-up was rear-ended, has been awarded $665,000 in compensation for a back injury in a car crash.
Peter Kilian (41) from Staten Island, New York, was sitting in his employer´s parked pick-up truck on Hylan Boulevard at Tompkins Avenue when, on February 17th 2011, he was rear-ended by a vehicle driven by Lillian Perez of Clifton New York.
Peter suffered neck and back injuries as a result of the accident, and damage to his shoulder which required surgery to correct. His accident came just months after he started working again following a back injury at work, and the additional damage he suffered to his back on this occasion has prevented him from working since.
Peter made a claim for compensation for a back injury in a car crash against the driver of the vehicle that rear-ended him, but Lillian Perez was only covered for personal injury up to $50,000, and her insurance company declined to pay more than the policy ceiling.
After seeking legal advice, Peter discovered that he was able to claim compensation from his employer -Daidone Electric of Jersey City – as a statute exists in New York that allows an injured party to claim compensation from the insurer of the vehicle in which the injury occurred when reasonable damages exceed the liable party’s insurance limits.
Fortunately Peter´s lawyer was able to negotiate a suitable settlement of compensation for a back injury in a car crash from the employer´s insurers amounting to $615,000, which together with the compensation payout from Lillian Perez´ insurers meant that Peter received a total of $665,000.