A 55-year-old employee involved in a trucking accident while working for a trucking company that transports asphalt from plants such as defendant Koch Materials Company was recently awarded $2,500,000 in a recent personal injury lawsuit. The plaintiff suffered from a fractured acetabulum, basilar skull fracture, fracture of the left frontal bone and left medial orbital and fracture of the left sinus, and was rendered deaf after falling off of his truck while loading asphalt on defendant’s property. The plaintiff claimed that the fall protection was inadequate and non-compliant with OSHA requirements, and that the defendant had an obligation to provide fall protection. Plaintiff also alleged that the defendant was negligent for its failure to follow its own standard loading operating procedure, and was lacking other standard operating procedures. The defendant claimed that it was actually a matter of product liability and that the truck was defective and unsafe. The defendant also alleged that any claims were barred under Pennsylvania’s Workers Compensation Act and questioned the extent and severity of the plaintiff’s injuries. Regardless of these allegations, the parties reached the $2,500,000 settlement after a full day of mediation.
