RAY, Judge.
Earnest Reddick, a truck driver, filed suit against Jesse Vernon Smith d/b/a Smith Auto Diesel Repair in connection with repairs Smith performed on Reddick's 1999 Freightliner truck. After a jury trial, the jury awarded Reddick $200,000 in damages. Smith appeals, and in several enumerations of error, he asserts that the trial court erred in denying his motion for new trial, or in the alternative, motion for remittitur, on the grounds that the verdict was excessive and that the evidence was insufficient to support the verdict.
The evidence in this case shows that in February 2005, while hauling a load for his employer, Reddick's 1999 Freightliner truck broke down near Cordele. Reddick called Smith's auto repair shop for assistance in towing the truck to the dealership. After a discussion where Smith represented that he was certified to work on Freightliner trucks, the parties agreed that the truck would be towed to Smith's shop for repairs instead. Once at the shop, Smith's employee inspected the truck and determined that one of its cylinders needed repair. At trial, the parties disputed whether Smith repaired the second or the third cylinder. Reddick testified that, over his objection, Smith repaired the truck with used parts. Smith billed Reddick $5,911.42 for the repairs. Reddick drove the truck for about sixteen more deliveries, before it broke down on April 27, 2005.
After the truck broke down, Reddick had it towed to a Freightliner dealer at a cost of $429. The dealer found that the truck broke
Upon learning that the truck's failure was due to a faulty third cylinder, Reddick then called Smith, who refused to come repair the truck, claiming that he had not repaired the third cylinder. At trial, Smith testified that he had repaired the truck's second cylinder and, thus, should not be liable for any damage to the truck's third cylinder. However, Charles Powell, Smith's employee who was present during the truck's repair, testified that Smith had repaired the third cylinder and that, during the course of the litigation, "Smith called me twice to get me to testify in this case and to say that we worked on the # 2 cylinder instead of the # 3 cylinder, which was totally untrue." Roger Mitchell testified as an expert on tractor-trailer repair and opined that the truck's failure could be attributed either to the installation of used parts or to the improper installation of rods and cylinders.
Unable to pay for the repairs, Reddick allowed the truck to remain at Freightliner for three months until he was told to remove it from their premises. Reddick then paid $2,700 to tow the truck to a storage facility. Reddick has paid $3,500 in storage fees and faces an outstanding bill of $5,847.50 for costs related to storing the truck.
Because he was unable to drive his own truck, Reddick spent thirty-two months prior to trial unemployed, and when he was able to find work, it was for far less money than he had made as an owner-operator of a truck.
At the conclusion of the trial, the jury awarded a verdict in the amount of $200,000 in favor of Reddick. Smith filed a motion for a new trial, or in the alternative, motion for remittitur, which the trial court denied. Smith appeals.
1. As a threshold matter, we address the deficiencies of Smith's brief, which does not follow the form or sequences required by Court of Appeals Rule 25(c)(1). Reddick's brief contains five enumerations of error, but those enumerations are only supported by a single argument section intended to address them all. "We caution that this Court's rules are designed to facilitate the consideration of enumerated errors and compliance with such rules is not optional."
2. When an independent truck driver is not on the road, he is not earning money, so Reddick sued Smith for, among other things, his lost earnings during the time he was without use of his truck.
"The question of damages is ordinarily one for the jury; and the court should
Reddick was authorized under Georgia law to present evidence supporting his claim for lost earnings and to request a jury instruction on that claim. "When someone like [Reddick] suffers an injury to his person or property by the tort of another and is, as a result, unable for a time to practice his profession or occupation, he is entitled ... to recover his lost earnings as an element of his damages."
Specifically, Reddick testified that during the two-month period after Smith repaired his truck and before it broke down again, he was able to deliver about sixteen loads for his employer, earning about $20,000. Reddick testified that he estimated that his monthly net earnings were about $6,000 after accounting for expenses and taxes.
Reddick was required, however, to prove these lost earnings with a "reasonable certainty,"
Here, Reddick testified as to the average gross and net profits he earned while driving his truck. Although he did not present any tax returns, he did submit an account summary provided by his employer supporting his claim that he earned approximately $20,000 during a two-month period. Although this admittedly is not the strongest evidence that Reddick could have provided in support of his lost wages claim, it was sufficient evidence from which a jury could determine probable lost wages.
Georgia law is clear, though, that Reddick had a duty to mitigate these damages by seeking an alternate means of earning a living. "It is recognized that a property loss, as distinguished from a personal injury, would only entitle the plaintiff to damages for that reasonable period of time which it would take him to make other arrangements for carrying on his profession."
Based upon the above, we find that the evidence presented at trial authorized the jury's verdict, and thus, the trial court did not abuse its discretion in denying Smith's motion for new trial, or in the alternative, motion for a remittitur.
Judgment affirmed.
MILLER, P.J., and BRANCH, J., concur.