Facts

Plaintiff Scott Denson sued General Motors Corp. and U-Haul Co., of California and U-Haul Co. of Arizona in connection with a rental truck fire that plaintiff claimed destroyed his personal belongings and caused him personal injuries.

PLAINTIFF'S CONTENTIONS: Plaintiff asserted claims for product liability, negligent maintenance and negligent repair. Plaintiff contended that the truck fire resulted from an improper radiator hose clamp that damaged the hose causing the coolant to be sprayed into the engine compartment and ignited by a dirty alternator that was not adequately cleaned following a prior rental of the truck to a customer who took the truck to Burning Man Festival in Nevada.

DEFENDANT'S CONTENTIONS: Defendants denied that there was any defect in the truck of any kind. Defendants claimed there was nothing wrong with the truck. It was serviced, maintained and repaired in accordance with manufacturer specifications. Defendant claimed plaintiff was a malingerer, who fabricated claims against defendants, and who was attempting to blame defendants for numerous prior injuries sustained in other incidents predating the fire.

Settlement Discussions

Defendants made a CCP 998 offer of $15,000. Plaintiff's first offer of settlement was at trial in the sum of $400,000, which defendants did not counter.

Specials in Evidence

In excess of $500,000 $250,000

Damages

Past and future medical and psychiatric costs and general damages

Injuries

Plaintiff claimed smoke inhalation, serious lung damage including COPD and sleep apnea, permanent injuries to the cervical and lumbar spine including nerve damage to the right arm, and post-traumatic stress disorder.

Result

Judgment of nonsuit granted at the close of plaintiff's evidence.

Other Information

Defendant GM settled prior to trial.

Length

six days