Insurance company may have to pay $5.2M after woman claims she caught an STD in car

A car insurance company has been asked to pay a staggering $5.2M (£4.1M) after a woman contracted an STD while having sex in a vehicle.

According to court papers, the Missouri woman – identified as M.O. – told GEICO that she would be seeking damages after allegedly catching HPV (the human papillomavirus) from the insured driver. She claimed he was aware of the disease and the risks of unprotected sex.

The company initially declined the settlement and sent the case to arbitration.

In May 2021, an arbitrator found the couple's sex in his vehicle had “directly caused, or directly contributed to cause” the HPV infection.

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Her ex-partner was liable, and GEICO was ordered to pay the woman's hefty settlement. However, the insurer has now asked for the payment to be discarded, claiming the judgement violated its rights to due process.

The request was denied, according to The Kansas City Star.

On Tuesday (7 June), the three-judge panel said the insurer did not have the right to “relitigate those issues" once damages had been determined and a judgement was made. The insurance companies sought to undo the action, with claims that errors were made in Jackson County Circuit Court and the settlement was not done in line with Missouri law.

Judge Tom Chapman agreed but also said he believes GEICO was offered “no meaningful opportunity to participate” in the lawsuit and existing law “relegat(es) the insurer to the status of a bystander.”

GEICO is contesting that the claim is covered under its insurance policy in a federal court case. That case outcome would determine whether the company has to pay the settlement.

Indy100 reached out to GEICO for comment.

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