City: Grafton Township, Ohio

County: Lorain County, Ohio

Date: September 15, 2010

Type: Car / Ambulance Accident
 
A tragic accident between a small car and an ambulance transporting a patient left one person dead September 15.  The crash claimed the life on an 82-year-old Hinckley Township woman, who was driving the car that struck the ambulance. According to the 26-year-old ambulance driver, he was “barely rolling” when the Cavalier collided with his ambulance, which was also transporting a 52-year-old passenger and a 61-year-old patient. The lady was pronounced dead at the scene. The others were taken to local hospitals.

If the ambulance driver had caused the accident, the issue of governmental immunity would come into play. Normally, when an ambulance driver transporting people with its lights or sirens on causes an accident, you cannot sue the ambulance company if it is part of the local government. You would have to use your own uninsured motorist coverage. However, a recent Supreme Court decision stated that your auto insurance company could exclude uninsured motorist coverage if you are hit by an ambulance or police car with their lights or siren on. Odd but true. This is why it is so important to talk to an experienced personal injury lawyer when dealing with ambulance cases or any case that involves a city or state vehicle.

If the city or state ambulance did not have it's lights or sirens on, then qualified immunity applies, which means that the governmental ambulance company pays your medical bills, lost wages, etc only after your own health and auto insurance companies pays the medical bills they are required to pay by contract.  Also, they would not have the right to get their money back from the state or local government, unless they were a self-funded ERISA plan.  In other words, they lose their right to subrogate against the local government at fault for the collision.  Of course, if the car is at fault none of these issues come into play.  Qualified immunity, total governmental immunity, state subrogation law, federal ERISA subrogation law, and uninsured motorists policies can all come into play. You can see how complicated this can become, even for lawyers. This is why you need to talk to an experienced Ohio personal injury lawyer, like those at the Chester Law Group.  Don't lose your rights or blindly trust what your auto insurance, health insurance, or local government tells you about your rights in these types of cases.
 
Lorain County, Ohio (population 284,664) had a total of 7,141 reported accidents in 2008. 29 of those accidents were fatal, claiming the lives of 30 people. 1,710 of those accidents were injury crashes, injuring a total of 2,604 people. Grafton Township, Ohio (population 2,722) had a total of 96 reported accidents in 2008.
 
Our thoughts and prayers go out to the lady’s family and friends.


If you've been seriously injured or have lost a loved one in a Grafton Township truck / car accident, call the Lorain County auto accident and wrongful death attorneys / lawyers at Chester Law Group at 1-800-218-4243 or order your FREE BOOK entitled The Insider’s Guide to Handling Ohio Accident Claims at www.ChesterLaw.com.