Tort Reform Anyone?

It really is hard to understand what more US Airways could have done to better serve the passengers it had aboard its ill fated flight that splashed down in the Hudson River shortly after takeoff on January 15.

While the investigation is not yet complete, evidence to this point shows that the airliner hit a flock of birds after takeoff shutting down the engines.

The airline has already given each passenger on the plane $5,000 for property losses which is $1,700 more than is required by the Department of Transportation.

From USA Today:

US Airways Vice President Jim Olson says that an insurance claims specialist is contacting passengers and that they'll be reimbursed for expenses or losses above $5,000.

The airline wants to ensure no passenger is "losing money for the inconvenience or anything lost during the accident," he says.

Under Department of Transportation regulations, airlines are liable for up to $3,300 per passenger for checked bags that are lost or damaged on a domestic flight.

For its part, US Airways had piloting the flight a recognized hero with nerves of steel and a solid flight record. He took the plane, loaded with 155 passengers and crew, into the river. There was not one fatality. He performed flawlessly in a situation where flawlessness was required. Nothing more could be asked of him.

Yet, the $5,000 may not be enough for some of the passengers. Walking away with one's life is apparently not sufficient. Could this potentially be the winning lotto ticket?

Joe Hart, a salesman from Charlotte who suffered a bloody nose and bruises, says he "would like to be made whole for the incident."

[...]

In addition to recovering losses, Hart says he's concerned about having trouble flying. He's flown on six planes since the accident, and each flight has gotten "progressively more difficult."

He says he was tense, sweated and "felt every bit of turbulence" on a Los Angeles-to-Philadelphia flight last week, though it wasn't that turbulent a flight.

Hart says he has talked to a lawyer in North Carolina but hasn't decided whether to take any legal action.

"I want to see how things play out with US Airways," he says. "I'm hopeful US Airways understands the significance of the incident."

Kreindler & Kreindler, a New York law firm that has represented plaintiffs in crashes, says it has been contacted by several passengers on the US Airways flight.

The firm's lawyers are determining what injuries and emotional distress passengers may have suffered, and what parties might be liable under New York state law, says Noah Kushlefsky, a partner in the firm.

That is very fancy talk for finding everyone they can possibly sue and for how much.

In many aviation accidents, survivors have claimed post-traumatic stress disorder. To recover damages, plaintiffs have to prove that injury or distress was caused by negligence, or the jet or its engines not performing as they should, Kushlefsky says. New York law requires a lawsuit to be filed within three years of an incident, he says.

I'm glad I was not on that flight and I'm quite certain that most of the passengers aboard wish they hadn't been aboard. Despite that, many of the passengers have been willing to walk away with their bloody noses and bruises and wet feet, thankful for their lives and the actions of a heroic pilot, and grateful for the way that they have been treated after what was a horrible and unavoidable accident.

Others are not so disposed.

Tort reform anyone?