Family Sues Google After Father Drowned By Following Google Maps Off Collapsed Bridge

Topline

A family is suing Google and several others after a husband and father of two drove his Jeep over a collapsed bridge in North Carolina while allegedly following Google Maps, causing him to drive into a creek and drown.

The Paxson family.

Saltz Mongeluzzi Bendesky

Key Facts

Philip Paxson died last September while driving home from his daughter’s birthday party in an unfamiliar Hickory, North Carolina, neighborhood and—according to the lawsuit—following Google’s directions over a bridge that had been collapsed for nine years.

The lawsuit, which lists Paxson’s wife Alicia Paxson as the plaintiff, says the Snow Creek Bridge was “unmarked” and “unbarricaded” on a dark and rainy night when Paxson drove off the edge and crashed 20 feet below—photos submitted with the complaint show his car upside down and half submerged in water.

Several people told Google about the collapse in the years leading up to the death and the company failed to update its route information, the lawsuit filed Tuesday in Wake County Superior Court in North Carolina says, and one local resident said she even received an email confirmation that the report was received, but nothing was ever changed.

In addition to Google, the lawsuit targets two businesses and one individual—Tarde LLC, Hinckley Gauvain LLC and James Tarlton—as those who owned or controlled the bridge and “had a duty and responsibility to maintain the Snow Creek Bridge” but allowed it to sit in a “dangerous, hazardous and defective condition” for years.

The North Carolina State Patrol said the bridge was originally the property of a development company that has since dissolved, the Associated Press reported, and no local or state agency had taken over the upkeep despite years of calls from nearby residents who anticipated such a crash.

The lawsuit says the collapsed bridge was still depicted as a passable road on Google Maps as of April, but as of Wednesday Google suggests a different route between the two addresses in question.

The complaint, which accuses Google of gross negligence and willful and wanton conduct, asks for an unspecified amount of compensatory damages, punitive damages and attorney’s fees for Paxson’s family, which includes his wife and two children, ages 7 and 9.

José Castañeda, a spokesperson for Google, said the company has “the deepest sympathies for the Paxson family” and will be reviewing the case.

The car of Philip Paxson after driving off the edge of Snow Creek Bridge in North Carolina.

Saltz Mongeluzzi Bendesky

Crucial Quote

“Our girls ask how and why their daddy died, and I’m at a loss for words,” Philip Paxson’s widow said in a statement.

Key Background

Examples of drivers running into peril by following GPS and digital map providers have made the news since such apps became commonplace in the late 2000s. A group of tourists in Australia drove 50 yards offshore before their car got stuck in the mud after their GPS told them to drive across 9 miles of water to reach North Stradbroke Island, and a group visiting Washington state followed their GPS onto a “road” that turned out to be a boat launch before driving straight into water. A handful of lawsuits have been filed against map providers, including one brought by Lauren Rosenberg, a pedestrian in her mid-20s who was hit by a car while crossing the street following Google Maps’ walking directions in Park City, Utah. Her lawsuit—filed in 2010—accused Google of being “careless, reckless, and negligent” in providing its directions, but it was dismissed after a judge later concluded it was not Google’s responsibility to ensure walkers look for cars before crossing the road. Some have claimed the prevalence of such apps puts people in danger as they distract drivers and send them down roads that weren’t built for such an influx of traffic. In 2018, a New Jersey town banned non-residents from driving on 60 of its streets during rush hours in attempts to crack down on users of apps like Waze, Google Maps or Apple.

Tangent

The U.S. Justice Department is conducting an investigation into Google Maps to determine if the company has illegally bundled its map and search products amid an already-sprawling antitrust investigation. The DOJ probe is focused on Google’s control of digital maps and location data, Politico reported, and how it is used by third-party apps that provide delivery services and ride-shares.

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