Legal Question in Personal Injury in Georgia

At 130 AM on 2/5/2011, my son was leaving the restaurant where he was employed. His car was parked close to the building behind the restaurant, near the fenced area surrounding the dumpster and waste grease bin. There was an ongoing torrential downpour when he exited the building, got in his car and backed out of the parking space. He drove forward approximately 5 mph and as he passed the fenced area, his front tires lost traction. He took his foot off accelerator and braked to stop. He drove forward again and his front tires and rear tires lost traction. Attempting to turn left to go around building, the car would not respond, instead slid into a raised curb, damaging his car (repair estimate $2500), car not driveable. Upon returning the next morning, he noticed the paved area where he lost traction was covered w/ grease. Further inquiry determined that employees on a nightly basis, after dumping waste oil/grease into bin, would place the pans, vents, etc on the pavement and spray them with water to rid them of oil/grease residue. An "oil/grease" slick has formed over time, discoloring the pavement as it travels across the parking lot and drains into a sewer pipe off property. My son took numerous pictures to document the scene. Obviously, the oil/grease buildup and the wet pavement caused my son to lose control of his vehicle. We filed a claim w/ the restaurant's insurer (complete w/ pictures), asking them to pay for repairing the vehicle. On March 8, they denied our claim, stating ". . . we do not find any liability on the part of our insured". It seems to me that the restaurant is clearly negligent in its failure to maintain safe work premises. Would like your thoughts.


Asked on 4/14/11, 2:07 pm

2 Answers from Attorneys

Phillip M. Cook Cook Legal Services, LLC

I think you are on the right path with a negligence claim. Consult a Georgia personal injury attorney ASAP. Do so before you reply to the insurer or speak to anyone else. Your only other choice would be to file a small claims action on your own and I would not recommend doing so.

Best of luck.*****The above is for informational purposes only and does not create an attorney-client privilege.******

Read more
Answered on 4/14/11, 2:14 pm
Glen Ashman Ashman Law Office also dba Glen Ashman Attorney

While I agree with Phillip, if your son has done what he should do, he should have full coverage. So the easy answer is just to make a claim against his own insurer.

But if not, a lawsuit is a possibility. Unfortunately, with the small size of the claim, no attorney is likely to take it, so you'd probably have to do a small claims.

Read more
Answered on 4/14/11, 4:49 pm


Related Questions & Answers

More Personal Injury Law and Tort Law questions and answers in Georgia