(Brian Powell/Wabash)
A St. Louis court has drastically reduced a $462 million jury verdict issued against trailer manufacturer Wabash in connection with a 2019 fatal accident in which a motor vehicle struck the back of a nearly stopped 2004 Wabash trailer.
The Circuit Court of St. Louis on March 20 cut to $108 million from $450 million the punitive damages awarded in the case, determining that the larger amount did not align with the Lafayette, Ind.-based company’s constitutional rights. The court let stand compensatory damages in the amount of $11.5 million, bringing the total amount to $119.5 million.
Despite the ruling, the trailer maker said it will continue its legal battle in the case.
“Wabash continues to believe that the damages remain abnormally high and the verdict is not supported by the facts or the law,” the company said in a statement. “The company continues to evaluate all available legal options.”
It added, “Wabash stands firmly behind the quality and safety of all its products, and this ruling will not prevent the company from continuing to provide its customers with products that contribute to safer roads.”
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In September, a St. Louis jury ruled that Taron Tailor, 30, and his passenger, Nicholas Perkins, 23, died instantly when their Volkswagen CC, driven by Tailor, rear-ended a Wabash-manufactured trailer. The vehicle’s momentum upon impact caused the rear impact guard to give way, allowing the vehicle to ride under the trailer, according to attorney John Simon of St. Louis-based Simon Law Firm.
In response to the initial verdict, Wabash characterized the crash as one where a speeding passenger vehicle struck the rear of a nearly stopped trailer. Wabash noted that the trailer, built in 2004, was in compliance with regulatory standards in effect at the time of manufacture.
“While this was a tragic accident, we respectfully disagree with the jury’s verdict and firmly believe it is not supported by the facts or the law,” said Wabash General Counsel and Chief Administrative Officer Kristin Glazner. “No rear impact guard or trailer safety technology has ever existed that would have made a difference here.”
The trucking company involved in the crash was not a part of the lawsuit, as the case was focused on civil product liability. The motor carrier, GDS Express Inc. of Akron, Ohio, ceased doing business in December 2019.
In 2022, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration finalized a rulemaking that updates two truck rear underride guard standards it said will improve protection for drivers and passengers in light vehicles in the event of a rear underride crash.
Rear underride crashes occur when the front end of cars crash into the back of and slide underneath large truck trailers or semi-trailers and the vehicles.
NHTSA, which said the 2022 final rule is designed to mitigate injuries or fatalities in such crashes, essentially bringing the U.S. standard equal to the current Transport Canada standard — which many U.S. motor carriers and trailer manufacturers already have met.
