Nationwide Lift Trucks, Inc. v. Smith

Appellee plaintiff lost his foot in an accident involving a forklift owned by appellant Nationwide, and leased to plaintiff's employer. In plaintiffs' suit against Nationwide for negligent maintenance, the trial court struck Nationwide's defenses for failing to preserve the braking mechanism alleged to have caused the accident. We affirm the judgment. The accident occurred when plaintiff was getting on the forklift and it suddenly went into motion, trapping plaintiff's foot. Two months after the accident Nationwide, which leased the forklift to plaintiff's employer, wrote the employer requesting permission to remove the forklift in order to preserve it as evidence. The letter stated that ""no destructive testing will be allowed on this truck without a court order.""