Law360 (January 10, 2019, 5:29 PM EST) — Geico car insurance hit the U.S. government on Wednesday with a suit in Alabama federal court for more than $6,000 it paid to repair damage to a driver’s car after a U.S. Postal Service employee allegedly collided with it negligently.
The Jan. 10, 2017, accident between Geico-insured Bettie J. Sparks and Postal Service driver Kelsey Skyler Tucker occurred in Birmingham when Tucker allegedly ran a stop sign, according to the suit.
“The insured was obeying all traffic laws and rules of the road, was driving at or below the posted speed limit, and was being very careful and attentive,” the suit says. “Defendant’s employee failed to stop at the stop sign and yield the right of way and was being inattentive.”
Geico submitted a formal claim form to the U.S. for $6,564 in May 2017, according to the suit. To this day, the government never responded, the suit says.
Under the law, according to the complaint, if a defendant does not respond within six months, it is the equivalent of a denial, prompting the instant case to be brought under the Federal Tort Claims Act.
The plaintiff says Tucker was performing duties for the Postal Service at the time of the accident.