Construction worker hit by falling rebar settles case for $2.9M 

A construction worker who was injured after being struck in the head by falling rebar has settled his negligence lawsuit for $2.9 million, his attorneys report.  

Stephen Samuels and Jason Reynolds of Samuels Reynolds Law Firm in Columbia report that on March 22, 2018, their client, Travis Sarvis, was working for a general contractor in Myrtle Beach, building a high-rise, when a sheet of rebar—steel reinforcing rods used in concrete—broke apart as it was being hoisted 26 stories above Sarvis. A piece struck Sarvis in the head, causing traumatic brain injury and injuries to his spine and shoulder.  

Defendant BMW Rebar had prepared the sheet of rebar, and the crane operator was employed by defendant LaborQuick, the attorneys report. Reynolds said that based on the OSHA report, he initially wasn’t sure who was at fault. 

“But what we learned is that both defendants had failures on their training and their safety practices; that had either one of them done what they were supposed to do, none of this would’ve happened,” Reynolds said. “I can’t believe he’s alive. The rebar put a hole in his hardhat. It also put a hole in his skull.” 

The day before mediation, Sarvis settled for policy limits of the primary layers of coverage with a carve-out for a coworker who received minor injuries after being struck by the falling rebar. 

Lawyers Weekly reached out to the attorneys for both BMW Rebar and LaborQuick. Neither attorney responded to a request for comment, and Reynolds requested that the attorneys’ names be withheld.  

SETTLEMENT REPORT — NEGLIGENCE  

Amount: $2.9 million ($2,650,000 personal injury and $250,000 workers’ compensation with waiver of the lien) 

Injuries alleged: Traumatic brain injury, annular tear and herniation at C3-4 and C4-5, left shoulder rotator cuff injury, post-traumatic stress anxiety  

Case name: Travis Sarvis v. BMW Rebar Company, Inc. & LaborQuick, Inc. 

Court: Horry County Circuit Court 

Case No.: 2019-CP-26-03303 

Date of settlement: July 7 

Special damages: $2,269,785.18 ($329,173.18 medical expenses at time of settlement) 

Most helpful experts: Dr. Jason Highsmith of Carolina Neurosurgery and Orthopedics, Jenny Glasgow of ProjectWorks, Dr. Robert Brabham of Psychological & Training Services, Stephen Fournier of Robson Forensic, and economist Oliver Wood of Columbia 

Insurance carrier: Zurich Insurance Group for LaborQuick, Inc. and Lloyd’s, London General Liability OCIP for BMW Rebar Company, Inc. 

Attorneys for plaintiff: Jason Reynolds and Stephen Samuels of Samuels Reynolds Law Firm in Columbia 

Attorneys for defendants: Withheld