Woman Sues Grubhub, Driver After Being Hit By Car

LAKE VIEW, IL — Food delivery service GrubHub and one of its drivers are being sued for unspecified damages after prosecutors said the driver intentionally hit a woman with his car outside a restaurant last month.

Twenty-four-year-old Bijan Choya Early was left with a broken pelvis, two broken arms, fractured legs and nerve damage due to the May 15 incident, according to a news release from the law firm representing her. Aamir Mohammed, 30, turned himself in the next day and was charged with aggravated battery with a deadly weapon, failure to report an accident and leaving the scene of an accident.

Early's lawyers claim Mohammed was asked to wait outside Ms. T's Southern Fried Chicken in east Lake View when picking up a food order because he did not have a mask, but he became upset and "kicked the front glass door several times" as he left.

Early, whose mother owns the restaurant, followed Mohammed outside and was standing in front of his car calling police when Mohammed suddenly drove away, hitting Early, knocking her to the ground and running over her body, according to prosecutors and video of the incident.

Prosecutors said Mohammed did not have a valid drivers license, and Grubhub told the Tribune he was not authorized to drive for its service. According to the Sun Times, Mohammed did not own the car he was driving either — it was loaned to him by a rental company for a cut of his profits. Prosecutors said he drove under the rental company's name.

The lawsuit was filed in Cook County Circuit Court June 8 and seeks more than $50,000 from both Mohammed and Grubhub, which it says failed to secure its platform from unauthorized drivers or warn the restaurant its platform was not secure.

Grubhub told Patch that it does not comment on pending litigation, but referred us to a previous statement issued May 19:

Our thoughts are with the victim and her family, and we wish her a speedy recovery. The individual charged with this crime was not a Grubhub driver and has never been contracted with us. He was using another contracted driver's account, which is a fraudulent misuse of our platform.

We have terminated the contract of the driver who owned the account and banned him permanently from our platform. We support efforts to prosecute both the individual charged with the crime and the driver who owned the account to the full extent of the law.

We run rigorous background and motor vehicle checks before contracting with any driver, among other security features. We are committed to continuously reviewing and evolving our practices to prevent fraud and ensure safety and security for the Grubhub community.

Mohammed could not be reached for comment.

Read the complaint below: