Family of child injured in tow truck crash gets $13 million verdict

A DeKalb County jury awarded $13 million to the family of a 7-year-old girl injured in an accident involving a tow truck, whose driver and company have faced similar litigation in recent years.

The jury originally awarded a $29.5 million verdict, but because the jury also found that the towing company, Associates Asset Recovery LLC, only contributed 55% to the girl’s injuries, the award was cut down to $13,275,000, according to court forms.

According to the lawsuit filed in 2023, the girl was riding her bicycle in the driveway of her home in DeKalb County when she lost control and rolled into the roadway, where she was struck by a 2015 Dodge Ram 4500 tow truck.

The lawsuit alleges the tow truck driver’s “negligent and reckless actions” of driving at a “speed greater than reasonable and prudent under the conditions” caused him to collide with the girl.

As a result of the crash, the girl suffered “severe head trauma, facial scarring and a traumatic brain injury,” as well as lifelong neurological injuries, attorneys from Morgan & Morgan, who represented the girl’s family, said in a release.

“While no verdict can undo the harm suffered, we are grateful that this outcome will provide meaningful resources to support our client’s future medical needs and help to ensure her long-term care and well-being,” Morgan & Morgan founder John Morgan said in a statement.

The attorneys representing the tow truck company in the case could not immediately be reached for comment. The driver declined to comment.

Two separate lawsuits have also been filed against the same driver and Associates Asset Recovery in August 2024 and August 2025.

One of the suits stated a man was driving home in his 2015 Ford Mustang sedan when his vehicle unexpectedly malfunctioned and stalled in the third lane from the shoulder on I-20 in the early morning hours of Aug. 7, 2022. The driver turned on his hazard lights to warn incoming traffic, the lawsuit says.

The lawsuit alleges that the tow truck driver was driving a 2018 Dodge Ram 4500 tow truck owned by Associates Asset Recovery over the speed limit and did not see the hazard lights when he struck the stalled vehicle on I-20 near Wesley Chapel Road.

As a result of the crash, the man in the Ford Mustang suffered “severe and catastrophic personal injuries” that resulted in his death, according to the lawsuit.

A settlement of undisclosed amount was reached with the man’s family last month.