Accident victim rejects $250k settlement and wins $720k instead

In a rare case in the State Court, an accident victim who rejected a $250,000 settlement went on to get around $720,000, reported The Straits Times.

Motorcyclist Koh Lye Soon suffered multiple injuries on the right leg in a December 2006 collision that led to job loss and a seven-year tussle to settle the case. The accident also left him with a permanent limp and recurring bouts of pain affecting his sex life.

Car driver Jang Suan Yoong accepted 90 percent liability for the accident, and vehicle insurer NTUC Income initially offered a settlement of $250,000, which was rejected by Mr. Koh.

The case then went to court, where a court registrar assessed the sums payable for general and special damages at some $549,000 in 2012. On appeal, District Judge Tan May Tee earlier this month edged the sum upwards to $682,723, with another $40,000 expected in interest.

The district judge increased the multiplier - the projected number of years for future costs and losses - from six years to nine years. The bulk of the award was for Mr. Koh's loss of future earnings and future treatment expenses.