Motorcycle manufacturers Harley Davidson Inc. have settled a lawsuit with a Chicago firefighter who was injured in a road accident in the US in 2004.
The victim of the crash, 53-year-old Jim McMahon, claims he was riding his Harley-Davidson motorcycle on a highway in Arizona when a defect in the bike caused it to wobble and crash. As a result of the incident, Mr McMahon is now paralysed from the chest down and requires full-time care and a wheelchair.
Although Mr McMahon alleges that it was a fault in the product that caused the crash, Harley-Davidson’s lawyers originally blamed it on driver error.
The case went to court, but the jury were deadlocked when it came to making a decision. It has now been revealed that the two parties have reached a settlement outside of court, the exact sum of which has not been disclosed under the terms a confidentiality agreement.
Harley-Davidson Inc., being a global leader in motorcycle manufacturing, is likely to have full professional insurance cover for liability. If the company admitted liability for the accident, the compensation payout to Mr McMahon will have been covered under the terms of this insurance.