$300,000

On a warm August evening, Ray G. and his family were driving home from a school sporting event. As his Ford F250 pickup traveled through an intersection on Washington Blvd in Roseville, California, a Toyota Corolla compact sedan ran the red light and slammed into the driver’s side of Ray’s truck.

The driver of the sedan failed to brake at all prior to the collision. The impact of the Corolla caused the heavier, larger truck to spin until it struck a curb.

The Corolla driver appeared to have been using her mobile phone at the time of the accident and admitted that she was not paying attention while driving. Law enforcement found her to be solely at fault for the accident.

Both cars sustained major damage had to be towed from the scene. Ray’s truck sustained over $10,000 in damage, including shearing of the rear axle shaft, and took nearly three months to repair.

Ray suffered persistent pain in his neck that traveled down to the center of his back, as well as lower back pain that radiated down his left leg, causing muscle spasms.

Despite constant pain, Ray continued to work. As a FedEx driver, he wasn’t able to take an hour or two off for treatment – for each appointment, regardless of length, he had to take an entire day off. Delivery drivers can’t interrupt or shorten the scheduled full-day route.

Ray had already exhausted his medical leave from a previous injury and didn’t want to lose his job. A few months before the accident with the Toyota Corolla, he had been in another collision that had also injured his back. Ray had recently completed treatment for the previous accident and had been cleared to return to work.

Increasing pain and discomfort interfered with Ray’s ability to perform his job, where he had to lift heavy objects and drive for long periods of time. He was unable to take pain medication or muscle relaxers while performing his job duties.

After nearly two years of sporadic physical therapy and steroid injections failed to resolve his injury, spinal fusion surgery became Ray’s last option to reduce his pain.

Despite clear liability, the insurance companies used the gaps in Ray’s limited treatment and previous accident to dispute the cause and extent of his injuries. They claimed that his need for surgery was not related to the collision. The legal team at the Arnold Law Firm pushed back, finally settling at policy limits for a combined $300,000.