What do you generally consider to be among the things that auto insurance covers? If you’re in a minor collision, for instance, insurance would certainly cover it. The same could also be true — depending on your policy — if a tree was to fall on your car or truck, damaging it. But it turns out that your insurer might also be on the hook if someone contracted a disease after having sex in your car. That, at the very least, is one of the implications of a recent legal ruling.
An article at The Guardian has more information on the case. In 2017, the plaintiff had sex with her boyfriend in his 2014 Hyundai Genesis. Unfortunately, as a result of that, the plaintiff was infected with, as The Guardian phrases it, “a virus that causes genital warts.”
The plaintiff’s argument in the case was that her boyfriend’s Geico car insurance could be held accountable. Geico denied coverage — which proved to be a fateful decision. The plaintiff was later awarded $5.2 million after going through arbitration — at which point she filed her lawsuit against Geico.
According to the judges who ruled in favor of the plaintiff, Geico had an opportunity to contest the case when the initial claim was filed, but opted against doing so. Had they engaged with the claim then, the judges ruled, thing might have gone differently. Ultimately, they declared that Geico had “no right to relitigate those issues.”
The article notes that the two parties in this case are also engaged in another federal case. Its status is pending.
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