A woman has been awarded $5.2 millon (£4.1 million) from a car insurance company after she caught an STD in the back of her partner’s Hyundai.
The Missouri woman, referred to as M.O in court documents, said she contracted human papillomavirus (HPV) from her partner while they were having sex in his car.
Her partner was insured by GEICO General Insurance Company. In February 2021, she informed them that she would be seeking compensation for the damages she had received.
According to court documents, the man was aware he had HPV as well as throat cancer, but continued to have intercourse without telling M.O of the risks.
The Jackson County Circuit court awarded the woman $5.2 million- equivalent to £4.1m- to be paid by GEICO after ruling the man was liable.
The insurance company took the case to Missouri Court of Appeals to dispute the ruling, but a three-judge panel found the judgement to be valid.
The ruling says: “After M.O. contracted anogenital human papillomavirus, she submitted a settlement offer to GEICO, asserting Insured negligently infected her with the disease during sexual encounters in his automobile, and that Insured’s GEICO-issued automobile insurance policy provided coverage for her injuries and losses.
“...The arbitrator found Insured negligently infected M.O. with HPV and awarded her $5.2m in damages.
...In 2017, M.O. and Insured began a romantic relationship, effective at that time was an automobile insurance policy issued by GEICO to Insured.
“On February 25, 2021, M.O. submitted to GEICO a copy of a petition she intended to file against Insured, and made a final settlement offer to resolve her ‘claims against Insured for the applicable limits of $1m’.
“The petition attached to the settlement offer alleged that during ‘November and early of December of 2017’, Insured and M.O. engaged in unprotected sexual activities in Insured’s vehicle, and during those sexual encounters, Insured ‘negligently caused or contributed to cause M.O. to be infected with HPV by not taking proper precautions and neglecting to inform and/or disclose his diagnosis’, despite ‘having knowledge of his condition.”
However, the insurance company is still contesting the decision in federal court, arguing that the claim is not covered under the policy.
The federal court’s decision of the case will determine whether GEICO is to pay the total damages to M.O.
