Written by From the Clermont Sun:
Carroll Fulmer shutting-up shop after 71 years
The company owns and rents more than 400 trucks and 1700 trailers, is a major employer in this area and all over the country.In recent years, Carroll Fulmer has been hammered with personal injury lawsuits, and some weeks, their lawyers are fighting 6-8 at one time with each claim more than $250,000.
“There are many attorneys who make it seem easy to sue a trucking company,” said Fulmer. “Many of these lawsuits are bogus, meaning that no injury actually occurred, but we still have to fight them and that takes a lot of money.
“These payments cause people to lose jobs and businesses to close and insurance rates to increase for everyone. We can’t carry on. It’s tiring and it’s draining fighting all the time. Sadly, we’ve had enough. I know I can’t deal with this anymore.”
Fulmer said that when they added the lawsuit expenses to the poor state of the economy, Carroll Fulmer had no choice but to close shop.
“We feel the most for our employees,” he said. “All employees will be paid for 60 days. Carroll Fulmer along with the assistance of local businesses and the City of Groveland will be helping their employees obtain positions with other businesses.
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