A federal judge in Maryland has dismissed a lawsuit from a trucking business owner who claimed State Farm wrongly reported him as involved in an auto accident. This situation has led to significant insurance-related issues that he says harmed his business and reputation.
William Young, the plaintiff, represented himself in court. He alleged that State Farm submitted a false accident report to the National Accident Reporting Agency after an incident that took place on January 5, 2023, in a CVS parking lot in Largo, Maryland. At the time of the incident, Young was insured by Progressive, not State Farm.
Young stated that he only learned about the accident report when Progressive contacted him, demanding a $2,500 payment and threatening to cancel his insurance policy. As a trucking business owner, he argued that losing his insurance would cause him financial harm, reputational damage, and emotional distress.
Although State Farm later admitted to the mistake and apologized, Young filed a lawsuit in Prince George’s County Circuit Court on February 15, 2024, seeking $500,000 in damages. The case was moved to federal court on July 23, 2024.
In his third amended complaint, Young raised seven legal claims against State Farm, including deceptive business practices, fraud, breach of contract, and defamation. However, U.S. District Judge Deborah L. Boardman dismissed all of these claims with prejudice, meaning they cannot be brought back to court.
The judge pointed out that Young did not provide enough legal basis for his claims. For example, his deceptive business practices claim was dismissed because he did not show that he relied on any misrepresentation by State Farm. The fraud claim was rejected because he did not identify a specific false statement made to him or prove that State Farm intended to deceive him. Furthermore, since Young was not in a contract with State Farm, his breach of contract claim was also dismissed.
The judge noted that Young’s claims of emotional distress and negligence lacked sufficient evidence, as State Farm did not owe him a legal duty. Additionally, Young failed to specify any defamatory statements or demonstrate how he was harmed by them. His claim of tortious interference was dismissed because he did not show any wrongful conduct by State Farm.
Judge Boardman concluded that Young’s repeated attempts to amend his complaint failed to address these legal shortcomings. The dismissal with prejudice effectively ends the case, leaving Young without further recourse in this matter.