A former Amazon executive was killed in 2013 after a collision with a van that was delivering Amazon packages. That's according to an investigation by BuzzFeed News and ProPublica, looking into Amazon's safety record.
The investigation says Joy Covey was Amazon's first chief financial officer.
She was riding her bike in a San Francisco suburb on Sept. 18, 2013, when a white Mazda turned left into her path, according to the BuzzFeed/ProPublica investigation.
“I heard a scream, immediately followed by a crash,” the van’s driver reportedly testified.
Covey, 50, was killed, leaving behind a young son.
That Covey had been killed in the collision was already known, but the fact that the collision happened during a delivery of Amazon packages is newly revealed information.
The delivery was being made via OnTrac, a regional carrier that Amazon had been using, according to BuzzFeed and ProPublica. The driver was a subcontractor who reportedly testified that the "vast majority" of his deliveries were for Amazon, but he was not using Amazon's routing technology or directions. Insurers for the company, contractor and the driver paid a $6.25 million settlement to the case filed by the guardian of Covey's son.
The details of the fatal crash were part of BuzzFeed and ProPublica's deep dive into Amazon's safety record as it tries to deliver packages quickly, including what it called "last-mile" deliveries.
The organizations said their investigations have found that drivers delivering Amazon packages in 2019 had been involved in more than 60 crashes that led to serious injuries. Ten people were killed.
BuzzFeed and ProPublica said Amazon provided a statement, calling the investigation “another attempt by ProPublica and BuzzFeed to push a preconceived narrative that is simply untrue. Nothing is more important to us than safety.”
Read more of the investigation at BuzzFeed News.
