Woman says crash caused serious back, neck injuries — $250,000 settlement

Type of action: Motor vehicle negligence

Injuries alleged: Lumbar disc herniation and left hip labral tear

Court: Fairfax County Circuit Court

Date resolved: March 14, 2025

Special damages: $86,426.94 in medical expenses

Attorney for plaintiff: Rakin R. Hamad, Alexandria, Curcio Law

Description of case: In March 2023, the plaintiff, a 41-year-old woman, was a front-seat passenger in a stopped vehicle at a red light in Fairfax County.

As the plaintiff turned to check on her children in the back seat, the defendant ran a red light and crashed into another vehicle in the middle of the intersection. That vehicle was then propelled into the front of the plaintiff’s vehicle.

While liability was clear, an issue in the case was the number of claimants. The defendant had passengers in his vehicle that did not clarify if they were making a claim on the defendant’s liability policy. As such, the liability carrier did not tender their grossly insufficient limits until the plaintiff filed suit.

As mentioned above, the plaintiff’s body was rotated towards the back seats as she checked on her children at the time of impact. This caused the plaintiff to suffer serious injuries, including a lumbar disc herniation at L5-S1 with nerve root impingement, radiculopathy, and a left hip labral tear. Her treatment involved months of physical therapy, epidural steroid injections, and pain management before ultimately requiring a L5-S1 far lateral discectomy. After filing suit, the plaintiff first settled with the liability carrier for their limits of $50,000 and then quickly settled with the underinsured motorist carrier for their limits of $200,000.

Rakin R. Hamad, counsel for the plaintiff, provided case information.

[025-T-160]