Collingwood v. Consol Pennsylvania Coal Company et al.
Sep 18, 2012OUTCOME: Won
Washington County 2010-2186, $3.3 million jury verdict on September 18, 2012. Consol owns an expensive piece of mining equipment called a coal shearer. Mr. Collingwood was driving his pick-up truck sou ... thbound on Route 221 in Washington County, Pennsylvania. Route 221 is a two-lane road, with one lane in each direction. A tractor trailer carrying Consol's coal shearer was being driven northbound on Route 221. As the two vehicles passed each other, a 123-pound metal cylinder, which is a part of the shearer, fell from the equipment, crashed through the windshield of Mr. Collingwood's truck, and decapitated him. Mr. Collingwood did not do anything to contribute to the accident. Consol Pennsylvania Coal Company is a subsidiary of Consol Energy, Inc., the company which has paid for the naming rights to the hockey arena in Pittsburgh. Throughout the trial, Consol maintained that after it loaded its shearer on the trailer, “it's not their problem anymore”. Consol argued that it was not negligent for failing to require the coal shearer to be covered with a tarp while traveling on the roads in Washington and Allegheny counties and that it did not have to inspect the equipment for loose objects before it left the mine premises. At trial, skillful and vigorous cross-examination forced Consol's mining expert to concede that Consol failed to take numerous safety precautions which would have prevented the death of Mr. Collingwood. This is the largest verdict in a motor vehicle related death case in the history of Washington County. Consol never made an offer of settlement prior to trial.