Murillo v. U-Haul – $42.7 Million Settlement – San Bernardino, California

Plaintiff Eric Murillo leapt from a burning and heavily smoking U-Haul truck onto the I-10 freeway below, impacting the back of his skull. He had rented the truck only about ten minutes earlier and drove just seven miles.

A 3 judge arbitration panel unanimously found that U-Haul was negligent in its inspections and maintenance of the truck and that the negligence caused a power steering fluid leak onto the hot exhaust manifold and led to the fire that forced Murillo to jump. Liability and comparative fault was bitterly contested. The panel found no comparative fault.

Damages were also bitterly contested. After final closing arguments in that phase and during deliberations, a settlement of $42.75 million was reached in October of 2021. All corporate defendants were held completely accountable.