Trial Magazine

Yadvinder Singh, a 30-year-old truck driver, was hired by Destination Anywhere to haul aggregate materials from Granite Construction Co.’s facility to a construction site. Singh drove his dump truck to Granite Construction, where an employee loaded it with washed sand. As Singh drove the truck toward his destination, its right front tire suffered a blowout, causing the vehicle to leave the road and overturn. Singh was taken to the hospital but died that evening. He is survived by his wife and two minor children. He had been earning approximately $50,000 annually.

Singh’s survivors sued Destination Anywhere, alleging it failed to perform a mandatory safety check on the dump truck two days before the incident. Had the inspection been performed, the plaintiffs argued, it would have been discovered that the front tire’s tread depth was significantly below the legal limit. Suit also asserted that Granite Construction’s employee negligently overloaded Singh’s truck.

The defense argued that Singh had routinely instructed aggregate suppliers to load his truck fully. The defense also argued that maintaining the truck, which Singh had leased from Destination Anywhere, was his responsibility.

The parties settled for $3.75 million. Destination Anywhere paid $2.75 million, and Granite Construction paid the rest.

Citation: Kaur v. Destination Anywhere, Inc., No. 17CV02758 (Cal. Super. Ct. Santa Cruz Cnty. June 8, 2018).

Plaintiff counsel: AAJ member Robert Allard and Mark Boskovich, both of San Jose, Calif.

Plaintiff experts: Larry Miller, trucking, La Verne, Calif.; Joseph Grant, tires, Los Angeles; Wesley Curtis, safety training, Grants Pass, Ore.; Tamorah Hunt, economics, Santa Ana, Calif.; and William Woodruff, accident reconstruction, Mountain View, Calif.