A series of errors at the heart of Google Maps navigation led to the death of a man after driving over a collapsed bridge - and his family has filed a lawsuit. Likewise, when Apple first replaced Google Maps with its own Apple Maps, the service was ridiculed for being riddled with bugs, and it took Apple years to bring it up to standard. But a new lawsuit highlights the dangers of all mapping technology, as Google is accused of causing a death by failing to accurately update its maps.
According to the local newspaper "Hickory Daily Record" (Hickory Daily Record), 47-year-old Philip Paxson died in 2022 after following the instructions of Google Maps and driving across the Snow Creek Bridge. The bridge reportedly collapsed nearly a decade ago.
Alicia Paxson, the widow of the deceased, has filed a lawsuit against Wake County. In the lawsuit, Google, its parent company Alphabet, and local business people who own the bridge and nearby land are all accused of negligence and responsibility for the death.
A spokesperson for Alicia Paxson announced the lawsuit to reporters at the scene, where the bridge was blocked.
"We have heard indications that the cost of repairing the bridge may be an issue," the spokesman said. "But as you can see, it could have been repaired simply."
According to reports, Google was notified of the bridge collapse. Paxson accused Google of negligence by not updating its navigation in a timely manner. Paxson said she hopes to see no one else come to harm because of the bridge.
On AppleMaps, the display of broken bridges is correct, while on Google Maps, the map of broken bridges is still wrong.