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MARCH 13, 2007 UPDATE: The Judge has denied GEICO's motion for new trial and granted Plaintiffs motion to amend its complaint for Insurance Bad Faith.

Geico Insurance Fails To Protect Insured Area Family - Jury Says To Geico "Justice Must Be Served"

PALM BEACH GARDENS, FLA.--On a peaceful spring morning in March of 2003, Tom Higgins was on his way to work. Mr. Higgins was traveling on State Road 5 at NE 22nd Avenue in Boynton Beach when suddenly and without warning his vehicle was violently struck in the rear by a minivan traveling at nearly 60 mph it was estimated in the accident investigation. The van was driven by Krystal Shields.

Mr. Higgins was provided with life-saving treatment at the scene of the accident along State Road 5 immediately and then when stabilized enough, rushed to the hospital for severe back, neck, arm and calf injuries. In the blink of an eye, Tom Higgins' life changed on that peaceful spring morning.

Suffering from debilitating pain, Higgins soon learned from doctors that the negligence of Shields in crashing into the back of his vehicle had caused no less than ten herniated discs in his back. This careless accident has caused him to endure ongoing treatment for over two years, which has included painful adjustments, massages, injections and medications, to attempt to alleviate some of the excruciating pain. Mr. Higgins, when overcome with the daily pain and immobility at times, finally realized surgery was his only hope.

Obviously with medical bills mounting, Tom Higgins was concerned for his wife, two children, and his job. Unfortunately, Krystal Shields only had minimal insurance on her vehicle, but he was hopeful because he had been one of the smart motorists who purchased underinsured, or UM, vehicle coverage through GEICO. UM insurance is purchased by a driver to cover them if the person at fault does not have enough insurance to cover the driver's injuries. Instead of helping Tom Higgins pay for his injuries caused by someone else, which contractually under the policy the company was bound to do, GEICO denied his claim.

After repeatedly refusing to help Tom Higgins and his family pay for his injuries, he was forced to file suit against his own insurance company to get them to do the right thing. On Thursday, January 25, 2007, a Palm Beach County jury found that Mr. Higgins' insurance carrier, GEICO, had failed to honor what they had written in their policy. The jury awarded Tom and his wife, Rafelle Higgins $5,249,600.00. "This is a very bad and troubling example of an insurance company failing to do what they promise", said Spencer Kuvin, attorney with Ricci~Leopold. "The jury sent a loud and clear message to GEICO and the rest of the insurance industry that you need to keep your promises," said Kuvin. "Consumers count on the fact that the words that make up a contract in a policy are true and accurate and they bank on coverage that will not only protect themselves, but their families. We hope that this lawsuit filed by Ricci~Leopold on behalf of the Higgins family and the justice that is served in it will cause immediate reaction in other cases pending of this nature and make them today - do the right thing for those they insure," he added.

"Justice was done today. Insurance companies must learn that when people spend their hard-earned dollars paying for insurance protection, they expect their insurance carrier to be there when they need them. Here, when the Higgins family needed GEICO the most, the company turned their back. Fortunately, the family had our judicial system to address GEICO's actions and justice was served, said Ted Leopold, Senior partner with Ricci~Leopold. "The legal system works and today, a Palm Beach County jury awarded full justice to the Higgins family, something GEICO refused to do. Hopefully precedence is set here that will help other consumers find that same justice in these disputes with companies unwilling to accept responsibility when they are indeed taking on that when writing these policies," Mr. Leopold added.