The rising costs of accidents: how to safeguard against nuclear verdicts

We recently had the opportunity to attend a conference with theTrucking Industry Defense Association.This group is made up of trial attorneys, expert witnesses, and other stakeholders in the trucking and insurance industry.During this time, there were a number of outstanding presentations, including a session with one of the top truckingplaintiff attorneys in the country. There were many great lessons learned, but the topic of nuclear (or outperform)verdicts was rightfully at the forefront.

Why nuclear verdicts happen

While some say anuclear verdictis anything over $10 million, the true meaning of a nuclear verdict is any verdict that goes way beyond the norm for whatthat type of case should typically bring. The term used by the plaintiff’s attorney was “an outperform verdict.”Most juries don’t really know what kind of monetary loss would be normal for a typical case, so the plaintiff’s attorneyswill do anything they can to convince the jurors that the huge sum they are asking for is reasonable. Surprisingly, thetrucking company’s management and safety culture plays a huge role in how that is accomplished.

Nuclear verdicts happen for a couple of reasons:

Establishing liability
Once liability has been established, the verdict goes up exponentially by    showing how the trucking company had systemic problems in their practices.  

Moving the timeframe
Even when the trucking company is not considered initially “at fault” for the    incident, plaintiff’s attorneys have been successful in winning big verdicts by moving the timeframe. The question    they ask themselves is: If the driver was not at fault at the scene, how far back do you need to go to prove    there was a problem before the incident?  

How a case for a nuclear verdict is established

Plaintiff’s attorneys are very good at finding and using any of these issues in order to appeal to the jury’s desire tomake things right for the plaintiff:

 
• Poor communication between safety managers and CEOs
 
• Ignoring safety breaches
 
• Failure to train
 
• Mistreatment of employees
 
• Repeated violations
 
• History of issues or violations with no action
 
• Failing to take available safety precautions when they exist
 
• Corporate or systemic issues

These shortfalls also make it easy for the plaintiff to paint you as dangerous to the community, which is where theReptile Theoryand nuclear verdicts come into play. It is important that you look at your own safety and company culture to ensure thatnone of these issues can be raised in court. It is also important to ensure that your company representatives are wellversed in all aspects of the company and safety policies before they are called to testify on the company’s behalf.

We are dedicated to helping our insured fleets become as safe and defensible as possible, and would love to partner withyou and your safety team. If you would like additional assistance with policy reviews, training recommendations, or anoverall Safety Culture Assessment, pleasereach out to our safety team.

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