No Coverage Under a False Name
Barry Zalma
Jul 6, 2023
Barry Zalma
Read the full article at https://lnkd.in/gFqHB_wR and see the full video at https://lnkd.in/gsnWF7d8 and at https://lnkd.in/g4tacxib and at https://zalma.com/blog plus more than 4550 posts.
Cheryl Tisdale was injured in an automobile collision while she was driving her own vehicle containing passengers while logged into the Uber Technologies (“Uber”) application as a paid driver. Tisdale served Farmers Insurance Exchange with the complaint, seeking underinsured motorist (“UM”) coverage pursuant to an insurance policy Farmers issued to Raiser, LLC, a subsidiary of Uber.
In Tisdale v. Farmers Insurance Exchange, No. A23A0616, Court of Appeals of Georgia (June 27, 2023) Farmers moved for summary judgment, arguing that Tisdale did not qualify as an insured under the Uber policy, or, in the alternative, that she was barred from seeking coverage because she intentionally concealed or misrepresented material facts and committed fraud by using a false identity in her Uber driver application and while using the app. The trial court granted summary judgment to Farmers. Tisdale appealed.
FACTS
Tisdale was an Uber driver from 2015 to 2017. According to her deposition, at some point Uber “stopped [her] from driving because they did a background check [,] and something popped up on there . . . they didn’t agree with.” In 2019, because she did not believe that Uber would hire her under real name, Tisdale applied to work for Uber using the name “Annie Mollie.” Uber approved “Mollie’s” application, and Tisdale began driving for Uber as Annie Mollie.
In April 2020, Tisdale was involved in an automobile accident with Graves while driving her own car, which was registered under her legal name, and while logged into the driver version of the Uber app as Annie Mollie. Tisdale gave a recorded statement to Farmers as “Annie Mollie.”
In May 2020, Tisdale sued Graves for damages arising out of the accident, alleging that he rear-ended her, pushing her vehicle into the path of another vehicle, which struck her, and that she incurred in excess of $184,000 in medical expenses.
At the time of the accident, Tisdale had not entered into a contract to use the Uber app in her own name/capacity, and Uber had not authorized her to drive as an Uber driver; instead, Tisdale operated her vehicle while logged into the Uber app using a false identity. Under these circumstances, Tisdale did not qualify as an insured under the policy Farmer’s issued to Uber.
ANALYSIS
The hallmark of contract construction is to ascertain the intention of the parties, as set out in the language of the contract. As a result, when the language of an insurance policy defining the extent of an insurer’s liability is unambiguous and capable of but one reasonable construction, the courts must enforce the contract as written and agreed to by the parties.
Tisdale served her own UM carrier – State Farm Fire and Casualty Company – and Farmers with a copy of the complaint and discovery requests. Farmers, in response, alleged that coverage for Tisdale under Uber’s UM policy was void.
Farmers moved for summary judgment claiming Tisdale intentionally concealed or misrepresented material facts and committed fraud by using a false identity in her Uber application and while using the app, she did not qualify as an insured under the Uber policy, and she was barred from seeking coverage based on the fraud condition in the policy. The trial court granted summary judgment to Farmers.
Tisdale concedes that she intentionally misrepresented her identity and presented Uber with a false driver’s license and a false insurance registration card in order to become a driver. This misrepresentation and fraud provided her coverage under the Farmer’s policy, which clearly bars the payment of damages to a driver who commits fraud or intentionally misrepresents or conceals a material fact relating to coverage. Therefore, the trial court properly granted summary judgment to Farmers.
ZALMA OPINION
It takes a great deal of chutzpah (unmitigated gall) to be fired by Uber for cause, rejoining Uber under a false name, and then claim a right to benefits from the Uber policy. Tisdale was punished by her lies and was not allowed to profit from her fraud.
(c) 2023 Barry Zalma & ClaimSchool, Inc.
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Post 5434
Posted on August 26, 2026 by Barry Zalma
See the full video at https://lnkd.in/g-ZtsSgK and at https://lnkd.in/ghMBdYWR
A Contingent Offer Accepted Ends the Dispute
In Farmers Insurance Exchange, a California Reciprocal Insurance Exchange, The Superior Court For The County Of San Bernardino, Kathleen Ann Wood, E087128, California Court of Appeals, (July 9, 2026) Farmers Insurance Exchange insured Doyle Archer under an automobile policy with bodily injury limits of $15,000 per person and $30,000 per accident.
FACTUAL BACKGROUND
Archer rear-ended Kathleen Ann Wood at a red light, causing Wood to assert a bodily injury claim against him. Wood’s counsel sent Farmers a pre-litigation settlement demand offering to resolve Wood’s claim for the available policy limits, stating that if the $100,000 demand exceeded the policy, the offer was for the policy limits.
Farmers timely responded in writing, agreed to pay Wood the $15,000 per-person policy limit, and provided the requested ...
Policy Limits Demand Accepted Settles Claim
Post 5434
Posted on August 26, 2026 by Barry Zalma
See the full video at https://lnkd.in/g-ZtsSgK and at https://lnkd.in/ghMBdYWR
A Contingent Offer Accepted Ends the Dispute
In Farmers Insurance Exchange, a California Reciprocal Insurance Exchange, The Superior Court For The County Of San Bernardino, Kathleen Ann Wood, E087128, California Court of Appeals, (July 9, 2026) Farmers Insurance Exchange insured Doyle Archer under an automobile policy with bodily injury limits of $15,000 per person and $30,000 per accident.
FACTUAL BACKGROUND
Archer rear-ended Kathleen Ann Wood at a red light, causing Wood to assert a bodily injury claim against him. Wood’s counsel sent Farmers a pre-litigation settlement demand offering to resolve Wood’s claim for the available policy limits, stating that if the $100,000 demand exceeded the policy, the offer was for the policy limits.
Farmers timely responded in writing, agreed to pay Wood the $15,000 per-person policy limit, and provided the requested ...
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Posted on July 22, 2026 by Barry Zalma
See the full video at https://lnkd.in/gWQQEySW and at https://lnkd.in/gyhdK6wv
This is a Fictionalized True Crime Story of Insurance Fraud explaining why Insurance Fraud is a “Heads I Win, Tails You Lose” situation for Insurers. The story is one of a collection designed to help to Understand How Insurance Fraud in America is Costing Everyone who Buys Insurance Thousands of Dollars Every year and Why Insurance Fraud is Safer and More Profitable for the Perpetrators than any Other Crime.
This is a Fictionalized True Crime Story of Insurance Fraud explaining why Insurance Fraud is a “Heads I Win, Tails You Lose” situation for Insurers. The story is one of a collection designed to help to Understand How Insurance Fraud in America is Costing Everyone who Buys Insurance Thousands of Dollars Every year and Why Insurance Fraud is Safer and More Profitable for the Perpetrators than any Other Crime.
After ...
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FCA’s Qui Tam Provisions do not Violate the Appointments Clause.
In United States Of America, Clarissa Zafirov, ex rel; Dr. v. Florida Medical Associates, LLC, d.b.a. Vipcare, Physician Partners, LLC, Anion Technologies, LLC, Freedom Health, Inc., Optimum Healthcare, Inc., Physician Partners Specialty Services, LLC, et al., No. 24-13581, United States Court of Appeals, Eleventh Circuit (September 1, 2026).
The False Claims Act (“FCA”) allows the Attorney General to bring civil suits against perpetrators of fraud against the government. This case involves another portion of the FCA-the qui tam provisions-which allow people, called relators, who have knowledge about fraud against the government to pursue a case against the perpetrator of the fraud.
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Cromp sued Able in 2022 for breach of contract based on the allegedly defective toilet installation. During that case, Cromp attempted to add claims related to Able’s conduct during the insurance claim process, including fraud, bad faith, tortious conduct, and bond-related claims, but the superior court denied leave to amend. The 2022 breach-of-contract claim was later dismissed with prejudice on summary judgment as time-barred.
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FACTUAL BACKGROUND
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Palomino-Crespo claimeds he did not meet the requirements for mandatory detention under § ...
