Pedestrian Lauren Rosenberg,
who was injured by a motorist
whilst following Google Maps
direction which she had
downloaded, has a lawsuit seeking
more than $100,000 (£68,000)
in the US District Court in Utah
against Google claiming that they
had supplied unsafe directions.
The lawsuit also names the
motorist which hit her.
Ms Rosenberg states that she did
believe she could reach a
footpath on the other side of
Deer Valley Drive, so she tried to
cross the four-lane street
however she did not reach the
median because she was struck
by a speeding car on a pitch-
black night. Rosenberg received
multiple bone fractures and she
required six weeks of
rehabilitation.
Her lawyer Mr Young said,” We
think there’s enough fault to go
around, but Google had some
responsibility to direct people
correctly or warn them, they
created a trap with walking
instructions that people rely on.
She relied on it and thought she
should cross the street.” He also
states that Ms Rosenberg is
seeking compensation for her
medical bills as well as more for
lost wages and punitive damages.
Spokesperson for Google, Elaine
Filadelfo said “the company had
not received a copy of the
lawsuit and could not discuss it,
but she disputed Mr Young’s
assertion that Google Maps
provides no warning that walking
routes may be missing footpaths
or pedestrian areas. Every
software version for desktop
computers and mobile devices has
had that disclaimer since Google
Maps was launched in 2008.”
The Park City police also stated
that some segments of Deer
Valley Drive have footpaths but
not the stretch that Rosenberg
reached. The street has a walking
path on the side Ms Rosenberg
failed to reach. Rosenberg’s
lawyer said the walking path was
“totally snowpacked” and of no
use to pedestrians in January.
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