bertram928

Driver of Carrera GT estate settled with plaintiff for $2,250,000.

https://www.sportscarmarket.com/columns/legal-files/carrera-gt-crash-hits-a-nerve



California Supreme Court ruled that releases are ineffective against liability for gross negligence, and at least in Washington and Virginia, against ordinary negligence

bertram928

My concern is this:

"the event organizer was the most affected", "when he informed his insurance agent that he might be sued as the organizer of the event, his homeowner’s insurance company immediately filed suit against him, seeking a determination that his policy did not cover him."

I need to check my umbrella policy that it does not have fine print that nullifies coverage against "negligence" or "gross negligence"

Frank 993 C4S

Looks like you need to be a subscriber to read. Cliff Notes?

Nickshu

I have an umbrella policy that covers me for liability at such events. I have checked w/ my insurance provider and have it in writing that I am covered for on-track events for liability. That being said my policy is only $3M so would not be enough in a case like this!!

bertram928

try this link

bertram928

I can do better than that, this is a long story anyway you cut it:

Bottom line and conclusion, do not take passengers on track, the #1 potential source of any liability

996SPECticle

There was a determination of "gross negligence" and so what was it please?

edit: I see now "Settled" but what was their argument.

Frank 993 C4S

Copy that!

Thundermoose

Nope

bertram928

only the "Carrera GT Crash Hits a Nerve" link works but has the most recent info and summary of the various legal strategies and interpretations that gave it a good enough chance to succeed in a jury trial to merit an out of court settlement.

The way it always goes, since many are afraid of outsized jury awards which are very unpredictable when judged by those selected for a typical jury without a clue about track day events let alone can ever justify driving above a speed limit or justify high powered cars, and super cars in general ( driven by the well to do)

Thundermoose

It worked the second time I tried. Thanks for posting.

bertram928

..

bertram928

i am not a Lawyer

But have faith if it came to trial that common sense would prevail, in my view no case for gross negligence.

I understand those that prefer to settle and move on.

I think the Owner of CGT had made a mistake not to be aware of the dangerous set up of pit exit on to middle of main straight thus needed to be on high alert instead of conversing with passenger (according to witness drummed up by attorney). A mistake like this is far from Gross negligence, i believe there had to be clear intent to act in an unsafe manner in direct defiance of any cautions / instructions given by the Track day organizer.

The Ferrari driver in my view made a bigger mistake in not taking the specified side of track to gain speed and not to accelerate quickly and perhaps not watching his mirrors or for traffic in general

all the other movement of chess pieces is just noise, highly unfair the CGT owner is no longer alive to counter suspect (the CGT owners mechanic) claims.

Porsche summed it up nicely how abusive of the system this legal action was.

jeffwhite

I am not a lawyer but I have been an event organizer for many years. I have had more conversations than I can count with attorneys, insurance carriers and risk managers about participant and organizational liability and how to mitigate it. The key finding in the CA case was that there was gross negligence from several parties. No liability waiver or insurance policy will protect against gross negligence (loosely defined as "doing something stupid" and legally along the lines of "what a reasonable person would deem to be unsafe"). However, as an event participant you are already covered by the organizer's liability policy - that's why you sign the waiver. It is also why responsible organizers are sticklers for safety rules - the rules are there to protect everyone against liability provided you follow the rules. If you willfully ignore the rules, then you can be deemed grossly negligent and you are no longer covered by the organizer's policy and likely not covered by any personal policy. I actually had this conversation this past weekend with a student at our event. It is easy to think that going outside the rules will be acceptable because you assume that everything will be ok. However, the rules are there for the very rare times when things go sideways. Follow the rules and you are protected.

So, yes you can take passengers for rides but (1) be sure he/she has signed both the track and organization waivers; (2) is properly attired and has a helmet that fits; (3) dial your driving back a little bit; (4) don't do anything stupid.

Getting a ride with an instructor is what got me hooked into the sport and I know that rides I have given have resulted in new students for our events.

stownsen914

I recall something about a car entering the track and crossing quickly into the "fast" line instead of staying within a blend line, causing the CGT to have to take evasive action at high speed and then crashing as a result. And possibly some error at pit out in sending the car out during the session with the rapidly approaching CGT. But I might be remembering incorrectly. If either of those things happened, it's not a crazy stretch to see why those actions might have been deemed negligent.