Accident Victims Stand to Lose in GM Deal

(CBS)  Arlene Dinnigan was driving her GMC Envoy when it slammed into a tree. Her daughter, Amanda, who was strapped in with a seatbelt was severely injured, reports CBS News correspondent Randall Pinkston.

Dinnigan can't help but feel that it was her fault.

Amanda is now a quadriplegic - she can barely move her head and needs a ventilator to breathe. Her father blames a faulty seatbelt design for Amanda's paralysis.

"The seatbelt went across her neck and almost took her head off," Robert Dinnigan, Amanda's father said. "It broke her neck."

Amanda's around the clock care costs nearly $500,000 a year, but after two years, the family's insurance is about to max out.

They filed a lawsuit against GM, hoping to recover damages to pay for Amanda's medical bills. But when GM went into bankruptcy last month, the Dinnegan's case was put on hold and may never be heard in a courtroom.

"I am her father," Robert Dinnigan said. "I have to fight for my little girl to get what she deserves. And I will not stop until Amanda gets her day in court."

Taking a page from Chrysler, GM and the government are trying to shed hundreds of product liability cases that have lead to injuries and deaths. That means the new GM will not be responsible for any claims filed before the June 1 bankruptcy.

Which is why the Dinnigans and other claimants, like Callan Campbell, were at the U.S. bankruptcy court today, urging the judge to allow their cases to go forward.

"Everyone should be compensated for what GM has neglected to make safe," Campbell said.

For now, Amanda and other claimants are being treated the same way as bondholders, vendors, lawyers - and everyone else owed money by GM. Whatever funds are left after bankruptcy will be divided among them.

"They've been hurt and if their day in court is taken away from them and the right to recover any medical expenses, lost wages or pain and suffering is taken away from them, they'll be hurt again," said Barry Bressler, an attorney.

If the bankruptcy court leaves claimants unprotected, advocates say Congress should force GM and Chrysler to set funds aside to compensate those who provided they're victims of defective vehicles.

[plkijn]

No wonder GM is broke if it has people like this trying to sue them. I suppose she sues GM because the tree doesn't have any money. Idiot driver should pay GM's court costs.

[snoopy28173]

It's sad about this young lady's case. They should make all seatbelts adustable like the ones in the front seat. I'm very short, and the seat belts in the back seat cover my face; so I put the strap behind me. The strap would do more harm for me in the case of an accident.

I get so tired of the insurane companies thinking their god and not providing the care that is promised in the contract. I get tired of these are companies bailing out on the debt they created and then stiffing the public with their mess.

[rhs648]

Again we make judgements based on a handful of paragraphs not much longer than a soundbite. The facts in this case could probably fill hundreds if not thousands of pages. Anything larger than a soundbite would probably bore most of us. However, is it right for us to draw conclusions when so many facts are missing?

[Dubai_expat]

Come on, guys. This is the American legal system we're talking about, here.

Obviously the tree is fault... I'm sure John Edwards would take the case.

[trinka72]

Are you kidding me? What are all the facts in this case? How old was Amanda at the time when her mother's GMC ran into a tree? ( Last I knew Envoy's can't drive themselves) What was her mother doing that she ran into a tree? These stories make me sad because the children pay for the parents lack of education when it comes to child passenger safety. If Amanda would have been in a booster seat, the seatbelt wouldn't have been against her neck. States need to mandate booster laws for parents like this. Chances are, if Amanda would have been properly restrained in a booster, she would be running jumping and playing. I wouldn't blame GM for this, I'd blame the parents.

[tautomer]

It's interesting that Obama is willing to screw these people but now the sacred UAW slobs.