Court upholds pay benefits for injured service manager

The Virginia Court of Appeals in June upheld compensation benefits for a service manager who was injured when he stepped on a plastic automotive fastener in a service bay.

The court unanimously rejected a challenge to the benefits by Farrish of Fairfax, which sells Jeep, Chrysler, Dodge, Ram and Subaru vehicles.

According to the decision, in August 2016, Mark Faszcza stepped on the discarded fastener in an uncleaned service bay. Faszcza, who has neuropathy, didn't discover the puncture wound until he got home with the fastener still lodged in his shoe.

He suffered persistent infections, was hospitalized multiple times and underwent surgery, according to the decision. A gastroenterology expert testified that Faszcza later developed Crohn's colitis from the antibiotic treatment he received to fight the infections.

The court held that Faszcza suffered a compensable on-the-job injury from the accident and found no evidence to support the dealership's argument that he "encountered the used fastener in his own vehicle."

There will be no further appeal, said Michael Allen, executive manager of workers' compensation carrier VADA Group Self Insurance Association.

A dealership in D'Iberville, Miss., negligently maintained its service department, according to a federal lawsuit filed by a customer who was injured when he slipped and fell getting out of his vehicle.

Ronald Ware seeks up to $75,000 in damages from Mandal Buick-GMC, where the November 2018 accident occurred. The store denies liability.

The suit claims Ware took his vehicle for an oil change and slipped on tile "that appeared to be clear and wet. The surface liquid covered the entire area and could have been either man-made or a result of condensation from morning dew, or the ceramic tiles themselves were inappropriately slippery." He reported what happened to a dealership employee and then drove himself to a hospital to be treated for a broken leg, the suit says.

The suit alleges the dealership negligently failed to inspect the area for dangerous conditions, keep the premises safe and warn Ware of the "dangerous condition."

In its answer filed May 8, Mandal Buick-GMC admitted Ware fell at the store but denied any negligence. The store blamed the accident on Ware's "own carelessness and/or negligence."

The case is going through pretrial discovery, court records show.