Jury Orders $1.2 Million Crash Settlement

A jury in Spokane, settling a legal fight between two insurance companies, is ordering a subsidiary of Farmers Insurance to pay $1.2 million for a car crash settlement.

The payment will be a portion of a $4.2 mediated settlement already awarded to Steve Tyrrell, who suffered a head injury in a July 5, 1988, accident near Medical Lake.

Tyrrell was awarded the damages in June 1994 after he and Daren Henderson of Coeur d’Alene filed separate lawsuits, each alleging the other was driving the sports car.

That judgment was appealed, while interest was piling up at the rate of $36,000 a month. After the Court of Appeals affirmed the 1994 judgment, the $4.2 million mediated settlement was reached last March.

Henderson was insured by Mid-Century Insurance, a subsidiary of Farmers Insurance. MidCentury was liable for the first $25,000 of damages, and American States covered anything beyond that amount.

American States filed suit against Mid-Century last August.

Attorney Stephen Haskell, representing American States, argued to the jury that Mid-Century didn’t adequately investigate the accident and should be responsible for a major portion of the settlement.

Mid-Century and Farmers failed to investigate who was driving, its officials said, because Farmers provided coverage for both Henderson and Tyrrell and faced a liability payment either way.

The heavily damaged car was mangled in a scrap yard before accident reconstruction experts could be consulted about who was driving the car.

Before the the case went to the jury, Superior Court Judge Kathleen O’Connor capped Mid-Century’s and Farmers’ liability at $1.7 million.

Mid-Century and Farmers also will have to pay $10,000 additional damages and attorney fees and costs to American States under the jury’s award reached on Friday.

, DataTimes