Verdicts & Settlements October 3, 2011: Electric car rollover leads to settlement [Missouri Lawyers Media]

A woman whose leg was amputated following an accident involving an electric car received a $1.5 million settlement.

Before a suit was filed, the insurers of the driver, Shelly Kempton, and the vehicle's owners, Diana and Michael Faltermeier, paid the policy limits to the vehicle's injured passenger, Heather Williams.

Around 11 p.m. on July 3, 2010, Williams was a passenger in a 2010 Zone Spark NEV-48, an electric vehicle similar to a golf cart, driven by Kempton near Gladstone Cove at Lake of the Ozarks in Morgan County.

Kempton lost control of the vehicle, and it tipped over, the plaintiff's attorney said. Williams fell out, and the vehicle rolled on top of her.

Williams suffered multiple broken bones and cuts in the crash. Her left leg was eventually amputated below the knee, Williams' attorney Bradley D. Kuhlman said. Her medical bills were estimated at $238,515.

The Missouri State Highway Patrol concluded the loss of control was due to the vehicle being driven at an excessive speed, Kuhlman said. The crash investigation also revealed Kempton drank alcohol prior to the crash.

The Faltermeiers owned the vehicle. Kempton had been at the Faltermeiers' home prior to driving the vehicle.

"This was not a very stable vehicle. And the Faltermeiers let her drive it after she'd been drinking, when she had never driven it before," said Kuhlman, with the Kuhlman Law Firm in Kansas City.

Dale Beckerman, of Deacy & Deacy in Kansas City, represented the Faltermeiers and declined to comment about the case.

George W. Reinbold IV, of Turner, Reid, Duncan, Loomer & Patton in Springfield, represented Kempton. He did not respond to a request for comment.

Shelter Mutual Insurance Co. paid $1 million on behalf of Kempton and Travelers Home and Marine Insurance Co. paid $500,000 on behalf of the Faltermeiers, Kuhlman said.

* $1.5 million settlement

Motor vehicle collision

* Case Number/Date: Not Filed/Aug. 2, 2011

* Special Damages: $238,515 in medical bills claimed

* Insurers: Shelter Mutual Insurance Co. for defendant Shelly Kempton; Travelers Home and Marine Insurance Co. for defendants Michael and Diana Faltermeier

* Caption: Heather Williams v. Shelly Kempton, Michael Faltermeier and Diana Faltermeier

* Plaintiff's Attorneys: Bradley D. Kuhlman and Chad C. Lucas, Kuhlman Law Firm, Kansas City

* Defendants' Attorneys: George W. Reinbold IV, Turner, Reid, Duncan, Loomer & Patton, Springfield, for Kempton; Dale L. Beckerman, Deacy & Deacy, Kansas City, for Faltermeiers