government investigations, and legal or regulatory proceedings as our business grows and as we deploy new services.
We are also subject to claims, lawsuits, and other legal proceedings seeking to hold us vicariously liable for the actions of merchants, consumers, and Dashers. For example, third parties could assert legal claims against us in connection with personal injuries related to food poisoning, tampering, or other food safety issues or accidents caused by Dashers that utilize our platform. We have incurred expenses to settle personal injury claims, which we sometimes choose to settle for reasons including expediency, protection of our reputation, and to prevent the uncertainty of litigating, and we expect that such expenses will continue to increase as our business grows and we face increasing public scrutiny. In addition, we could be subject to legal claims relating to the sale of alcoholic beverages or alcohol consumption. Regardless of the outcome of any legal proceeding, any injuries to, or deaths of, any consumers, Dashers, or third parties could result in negative publicity and harm to our brand, reputation, business, financial condition, and results of operations.
Reports, whether true or not, of food-borne illnesses (such as E. Coli, avian flu, bovine spongiform encephalopathy, hepatitis A, trichinosis, or salmonella) and injuries caused by food tampering or inappropriate or unsanitary food preparation, handling, or delivery, or other food safety incidents have led to potential legal claims against, and severely injured the reputations of, participants in the food business and could do so in the future as well. Further, if any such report were to affect one or more of the merchants on our platform that generate a significant percentage of our overall Marketplace GOV, it could seriously harm our business. The potential for acts of terrorism on the U.S. or international food supply also exists and, if such an event occurs, it could harm our business and results of operations. Further, food that is ordered through our platform could be subject to a recall, but we may have limited ability, if any, to ensure compliance with a food recall. In addition, reports of food-borne illnesses, food recalls, food tampering, or inappropriate or unsanitary food preparation, handling, or delivery, even those occurring solely at merchants that are not on our platform, could, as a result of negative publicity about the restaurant or grocery industry, adversely affect our business, financial condition, and results of operations.
We also face potential liability and expense for claims, including class, collective, and other representative actions, by or relating to Dashers regarding, among other things, the classification of Dashers that utilize our platform as well as our Dasher pay model, including claims regarding disclosures we make with respect to sales tax, service fees, delivery fees, and gratuities, the process of signing up to become a Dasher, including the background check process, and the nature and frequency of our communications to Dashers via email, text, or telephone. In addition, we also face potential liability and expense for claims, including class actions, by consumers relating to, among other things, our Dasher pay model, including claims regarding disclosures we make with respect to sales tax, service fees, delivery fees, and gratuities, the local food delivery logistics services we facilitate, discrepancies between the menus on our website and consumer mobile application and the menus at the restaurant from which the food is delivered, including discrepancies in menu items and the prices of such items and taxes on such items, and the nature and frequency of our marketing communications to consumers via email, text, or telephone. See the section titled “Business—Legal Proceedings” for additional information about these types of legal proceedings.
In addition, we also face potential liability and expense for claims relating to the information that we publish on our website and mobile applications, including claims for trademark and copyright infringement, defamation, libel, and negligence, among others.
The results of any such claims, lawsuits, arbitration proceedings, government investigations, or other legal or regulatory proceedings cannot be predicted with any degree of certainty. Any claims against us, whether meritorious or not, could be time-consuming, result in costly litigation, be harmful to our
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