Injury Law Center Obtains $250K Settlement in Spine Injury Case

The Injury Law Center is thrilled to report that we have obtained a settlement of $250,000 for a young woman who sustained a spine injury requiring a cervical fusion surgery following a highway collision. The $250,000 settlement maxed out the entire uninsured motorist (UM) policy.

The facts of the case involve a New Hampshire resident who was severely injured while driving her boyfriend’s car in Massachusetts when a “phantom vehicle” caused a three-car collision due to an erratic lane change maneuver. The phantom vehicle fled and left a scene of wreckage behind him.
Attorney Joe Russo was able to go through the young woman’s boyfriend’s insurance company to file an uninsured motorist (UM) claim. He explained “UIM/UM insurance is designed to protect the injured party in this exact scenario – your client is hit by a motorist with inadequate insurance or no insurance. In the case of the “hit and run driver,” the offender is treated as uninsured which triggers a UM claim. In the case of the “phantom driver” who causes a collision, but doesn’t make contact with your client, the offender is also treated as uninsured if you can prove your client wasn’t negligent.”

He went on to comment: “we were able to recover for our client in this case because although she was not hit by the phantom vehicle, the offender’s erratic lane change caused a three-car spinout resulting in my client getting rear-ended and pushed into the concrete median. Since our client was not related to her boyfriend and wasn’t living in his house, she didn’t have to be listed on his policy for her to pursue a UM claim.”

“This young woman suffered a really horrific injury. We are happy that she was able to get every penny available – especially right before the holidays.”