Google accused of directing motorist to drive off collapsed bridge
The family of an American man who tragically drowned after his vehicle plunged off a collapsed bridge is asserting that his demise resulted from Google’s failure to update its maps.
The family of Philip Paxson is bringing a lawsuit against the company, alleging that Google’s negligence involved not indicating that the bridge had collapsed almost a decade prior.
In September 2022, Mr. Paxson lost his life while attempting to cross the damaged bridge located in Hickory, North Carolina.
A representative for Google has stated that the company is currently examining the accusations.
This legal action was initiated in civil court in Wake County on Tuesday.
Mr. Paxson, a father of two, was en route home from his daughter’s ninth birthday celebration at a friend’s residence and found himself in an unfamiliar area at the time of the incident, according to the family’s legal claim.
His spouse had previously taken their two daughters home, while he remained behind to assist with the cleanup.
“In an unfamiliar area with local road knowledge lacking, he relied on Google Maps, trusting it to guide him safely back to his wife and daughters,” the family’s legal representatives declared in their announcement regarding the lawsuit.
“Tragically, as he drove cautiously in the darkness and rain, he unsuspectingly followed Google’s outdated directions to what his family later learned for nearly a decade was called the ‘Bridge to Nowhere,’ crashing into Snow Creek, where he drowned.”
Local residents had repeatedly contacted Google to have them change their online maps after the bridge collapsed in 2013, the suit claims.
