Pet-sitting startup Rover and ex-‘Baywatch’ actress named in lawsuit after woman’s dog is run over – GeekWire

A Los Angeles lady has filed a lawsuit in opposition to Seattle-based Rover, claiming that the pet-sitting startup didn’t arrange a rigorous vetting device for its sitters which resulted in the loss of life of the woman’s dog.

The grievance used to be filed Monday morning in Los Angeles County Superior Court via the Los Angeles company Tauler Smith. Actress and type Angelica Bridges, who as soon as starred at the TV sequence “Baywatch,” used to be named as a co-defendant as a result of she used to be the sitter taking good care of the unnamed plaintiff’s Papillion, named Snoopy.

The swimsuit additionally claims that Rover falsely promises complimentary insurance coverage to shoppers. “In reality, Rover does nothing to vet its sitters and does not offer any meaningful insurance to its aggrieved customers,” the grievance reads.

Rover advised GeekWire that it heard in regards to the swimsuit during the media on Monday and is taking a look into it.

Bridges, 47, used to be now not correctly vetted as a sitter, the swimsuit argues, as a result of she misrepresented having a fenced backyard at her Beverly Hills, Calif., house. The dog used to be allegedly unsupervised open air, escaped and used to be run over via a automotive.

The 1 1/2-year-old Snoopy, who is characterised as “perfectly trained” and “extremely well behaved” in the grievance, served as an emotional fortify animal for the plaintiff, known as Jane Doe in the file. The lady additional alleges that the Rover app sophisticated the plaintiff’s talent to get in contact with Bridges, and main points the frantic seek which happened on April three, 2017, when the dog went lacking.

A passage in the grievance accommodates an alleged message from Bridges to the plaintiff: “I tried calling you through Rover but it is not going through! Please call me asap. Snoopy went under a literal 2 inch opening under our fence & we have had the whole neighborhood looking for him right now. Please call me!”

The plaintiff reportedly skilled “extreme emotional distress due to Snoopy’s death, which aggravated and worsened her medical condition,” the grievance reads. “The distress prevented her from beginning her new full-time job, leaving the house, and going to scheduled doctor appointments.”

Under the Aftermath segment of the grievance, it alleges that Bridges had her standing as a relied on, five-star sitter reinstated on Rover, and that the plaintiff’s talent to price and assessment Bridges’ care of Snoopy were disabled.

Founded in 2011, Rover runs the biggest puppy services and products market, serving to to check greater than 140,000 vetted sitters throughout 10,000 towns in North America. The corporate raised $65 million, its biggest funding spherical ever, closing summer season.

The plaintiff is looking for damages to be decided at trial. Read the whole grievance right here.