Maryland Court Overturns $500k Verdict Over Insurance Nonpayment Issue

A Maryland appeals court has overturned a $500,000 verdict to a woman who was hit by a truck because the trial judge erred by allowing the jury to hear that the driver’s liability insurance had been cancelled because of nonpayment.

The Daily Record reported that the Court of Special Appeals, the state’s intermediate appellate court, ruled on Friday that the driver’s lack of liability insurance had no bearing on the April 2009 crash or the injuries Moran Burdette Perry suffered as a result. But the information likely prejudiced the Prince George’s County jury that awarded Perry $529,500.

The court said the driver’s lack of insurance would have been relevant only if he had lost it due to unsafe driving.