Austin, Texas Jury Awards $175,485 in Rear-End Collision

On September 8, 2014, in Austin, Texas, a construction worker's vehicle was stopped at a red light on Farm to Market Road 969, with a food truck worker's vehicle stopped behind it. A driver operating a Ford F-550 truck with a bucket apparatus for Austin Energy then rear-ended the food truck worker's vehicle, pushing it into the construction worker's vehicle. Both plaintiffs claimed neck and back injuries, including strains, sprains, and herniated lumbar discs.

The injured drivers filed separate lawsuits, later consolidated, against the City of Austin Electric Utility Department, operating as Austin Energy. The plaintiffs alleged the defendant driver negligently failed to maintain a proper lookout and control his speed. The defendant driver was later nonsuited from the case. The plaintiffs' insurer also intervened to recover property damage payments but settled before trial. The city defendants denied negligence, with the driver testifying he swerved into the left lane to avoid a small, red car that suddenly changed lanes in front of him. Eyewitnesses corroborated the presence of a small, red car, and the jury received a sudden emergency instruction.

Both plaintiffs underwent rounds of lumbar epidural steroid injections and physical therapy. They testified about difficulties with prolonged sitting or standing and performing job duties during recovery, and one plaintiff reported anxiety while driving. The construction worker sought approximately $39,362 for past medical expenses, and the food truck worker sought about $51,123 for past medical expenses, along with damages for past and future mental anguish, physical pain, and physical impairment. After a three-day trial, a jury deliberated for 90 minutes. The jury found the defendants negligent and awarded the plaintiffs a total of $175,485.