Someone who I know complains continually about his adult daughter. He bought a car for his daughter, in order
for her to have transportation to work and college. He wants her to have a way to get around
without asking him for rides all the time.
Well this man has found himself in a bit of a quagmire: His daughter is not
a responsible driver. She has been
involved in a couple of minor car accidents (where she was at fault) and has
accumulated several unpaid traffic tickets. To make matters worse, her driver's
license is now suspended because of the unpaid tickets and failure to appear in
court. In the state of Florida, failure to appear and driving with a suspended
license, are both arrestable offenses.
So, it would not shock me to learn that she has a warrant out for her
arrest.
This doesn't deter her from continuing to drive the car, which is in her
father's name, I must add. It is really
his daughter's car but technically he still owns it, since he holds the title. He says that the reason that he agreed to
hold title to the car has to do with the high cost of automobile insurance for
people with poor driving records. He
pays her insurance because it is cheaper for him to do it. The insurance
premiums aren't affordable for his daughter, due to her age and her train wreck
of a driving record.
Quite a few times, in the past his own driver's license was put in
jeopardy, due to his daughter's poor driving habits. In Florida, several cities implement traffic
cameras at busy intersections. The
cameras snap photos of cars, when the drivers have broken a law. So, he was issued many traffic tickets for
running red lights. Only, he wasn't
driving the car at the time of the traffic infractions; His daughter was the
culprit. The worst part of all, is that he suspects that his daughter abuses
drugs.
I don't normally give advice to people, especially when it comes to their
children. In this case, I suggested that
he give her some tough love. I suggested
that he was spoiling his daughter and not allowing her to grow into a
responsible adult. Every time she falls, he is there to rescue her instead of
allowing her to learn from her mistakes. She doesn't contribute anything
towards the auto insurance premiums. Perhaps, she would learn her lesson if he
transferred the car title over to her and made her pay for her own
insurance. He patiently listened to my
suggestions. However, I seriously doubt
that he will implement any of them.
People will dog your vehicle out, because it is
not theirs.
I was at a local mechanic shop, getting some new
tires installed on my car. While I sat
in the waiting room I overheard a conversation between a mechanic and another
customer. The mechanic told the customer
that her car’s muffler and some other parts underneath the car were damaged and
in need of repair. The repair costs were
very expensive and the woman let out some unsavory words in anger. She surmised that her son must have driven
into some pot holes. She was certain
that he damaged her car, since he was the only other person that drove her
car.
Vicarious Liability: Is it worth the risk?
A county court judge once told a group of us in
the court room that we should never let anyone drive our car. This includes your mother, your father, and
even your spouse. He says the only
exception is if you have a 1 million dollar or more umbrella insurance
policy. The judge was a former civil
litigation attorney, who cautioned us with good reason.
There is a legal doctrine under the common law, called
"vicarious liability". It
simply means liability, with or without fault. It holds that the owner of an automobile can
be held responsible for anything that is done behind the wheel of the
automobile. The owner is liable for any
traffic tickets, personal injuries, or property damage caused by the driver of
the vehicle regardless of fault.
Therefore, if you allow someone to drive your car, and they cause an
accident or incur traffic infractions, both you and the driver can be held
responsible or sued.
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