Photo: Mercedes-Maybach
In a bizarre ruling, the Missouri Court of Appeals upheld a $5.2 million judgment against auto insurance company GEICO. In the case, a woman claimed she unwittingly caught HPV from her former romantic partner in his car.
Car insurance is a necessary annoyance, considering the insane amount of money involved in liability cases. Simply put, in the case of an accident, the driver at fault would most likely not be able to pay damages without auto liability insurance coverage. But can the liability extend to what people do inside their cars? At least two judges believe so, and this is as ridiculous as it sounds. Consider this story.
According to court papers cited by the Kansas City Star, a woman identified as M.O. notified GEICO in February 2021 of her intention to seek monetary damages alleging she contracted HPV (the human papillomavirus) from an insured member in his automobile. The woman claimed the man infected her with the STD, despite being aware of his condition and the risks of unprotected intercourse.
This sounds ridiculous, but a lot of money is involved, and her former partner couldn’t have possibly paid. Think of it as a clever way to stick it to the insurance company. As expected, GEICO declined the settlement, and the case went to arbitration. Here, things got really interesting, as the arbitrator found that what happened inside the vehicle “directly caused, or directly contributed to cause” the HPV infection. The man was found liable for not disclosing his infection status, and the woman was awarded $5.2 million for damages to be paid by GEICO.
The insurance company filed motions seeking a new hearing and for the award to be scrapped, saying the judgment violated the company’s rights to due process. The requests were denied, so GEICO appealed. Still, a three-judge panel at the Missouri Court of Appeals upheld a $5.2 million judgment. The reason was that GEICO did not have a right to “relitigate those issues” once damages had been determined, and a judgment was entered.
The legal fight is still ongoing in a federal court, as GEICO tries to prove the claim is not covered under its insurance policy. This should have been obvious from the very beginning, but the ways of justice are not always straight. The outcome of this trial would determine whether the company has to actually pay the settlement, so we’ll make sure to follow this story.
According to court papers cited by the Kansas City Star, a woman identified as M.O. notified GEICO in February 2021 of her intention to seek monetary damages alleging she contracted HPV (the human papillomavirus) from an insured member in his automobile. The woman claimed the man infected her with the STD, despite being aware of his condition and the risks of unprotected intercourse.
This sounds ridiculous, but a lot of money is involved, and her former partner couldn’t have possibly paid. Think of it as a clever way to stick it to the insurance company. As expected, GEICO declined the settlement, and the case went to arbitration. Here, things got really interesting, as the arbitrator found that what happened inside the vehicle “directly caused, or directly contributed to cause” the HPV infection. The man was found liable for not disclosing his infection status, and the woman was awarded $5.2 million for damages to be paid by GEICO.
The insurance company filed motions seeking a new hearing and for the award to be scrapped, saying the judgment violated the company’s rights to due process. The requests were denied, so GEICO appealed. Still, a three-judge panel at the Missouri Court of Appeals upheld a $5.2 million judgment. The reason was that GEICO did not have a right to “relitigate those issues” once damages had been determined, and a judgment was entered.
The legal fight is still ongoing in a federal court, as GEICO tries to prove the claim is not covered under its insurance policy. This should have been obvious from the very beginning, but the ways of justice are not always straight. The outcome of this trial would determine whether the company has to actually pay the settlement, so we’ll make sure to follow this story.
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