Kaiser Wants Woman’s Slip and Fall Settlement Money
5-5-2015 23:48:00


OAKLAND, Calif. (CN) - Kaiser says it has a right to any settlement awarded to a woman who sustained injuries when she slipped and fell in a grocery store, she claims in an Alameda Superior Court complaint.


Karen Dunn Snider was shopping at a Safeway grocery store in Half Moon Bay, Calif. when she slipped on juice spilled by an employee.
She sought medical treatment for alleged injuries at Kaiser’s Redwood City facility and later at Kaiser Pleasanton.
Snider sued Safeway Inc. for negligence, general and compensatory damages, medical expenses, and loss of wages and earning capacity.
She also seeks a declaratory judgment against Kaiser Permanente Insurance Company, which has asserted a lien against her for any award of damages levied against Safeway.
In asserting the lien, Kaiser has “stated that they do not know whether the lien claim … is complete, as indeed they seek to impose upon plaintiff the responsibility for making that determination, even though plaintiff is not medically trained and thus does not possess sufficient expertise to do so,” according to the complaint. “Further, said defendants have not shown that the … lien was reasonable in the amount, nor have they shown that the amounts were reasonably necessary because of the injuries plaintiff suffered. Further, defendants have not stated whether theirs is a capitated lien, and/or whether it is a lien for debts incurred and/or paid.”
Snider seeks a judicial determination of rights and duties, and whether Kaiser has a right to any prospective recovery from Safeway.
Snider is represented by Joseph Scanlon, in Berkeley, Calif.
RG15-762790