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Most states have laws in place which hold parents legally liable for accidents caused by their teenagers, under a legal theory known as vicarious liability.
In other words, if your child causes an accident in your vehicle and causes damages to a third-party victim, that person has the legal option to sue both of you in civil court to obtain compensation for their losses. An experienced personal injury attorney can assist in helping navigate this framework successfully.
Family Purpose Doctrine
Understanding how the Family Purpose Doctrine affects your family’s liability exposure is critical for mitigating risk. It could determine whether you must cover an accident caused by one of your children while driving a vehicle registered to you and insured under your policy.
Vicarious liability allows victims to pursue recovery against the head of household rather than from an independent driver for personal injuries caused by them, since he or she can control who uses his/her car and when.
In some states, family purpose doctrine can expand parental liability when they allow their teen driver to use the car for non-family-related reasons, such as picking up friends. Therefore, it may be prudent for families to maintain individual policies for all drivers within their household.
Negligent Entrustment
Under certain state laws, parents may be held liable for negligent entrustment of their teen drivers if they knew or should have known that their teenager represented an undue risk on the road and failed to take reasonable steps to prevent accidents. This often happens when there has been drug or alcohol abuse as well as prior DUI offenses on record with their teen driver.
Under vicarious liability laws, parents could be held liable for car accidents caused by their children under vicarious liability laws, enabling plaintiffs to sue for compensation for property damage, medical bills, lost wages, pain and suffering as well as emotional trauma caused by these incidents.
Subscribing their child to their family insurance policy can reduce this risk, but doesn’t offer complete protection from litigation. Therefore, it’s advisable to speak to an experienced attorney regarding how your particular situation could alter legal rights and options available to you; additionally it would be a good idea to have an open discussion with them regarding the risks of drinking and driving.
Vicarious Liability
Parents or legal guardians in Colorado can be held liable for damages their teenage driver causes when using a vehicle owned by them, known as vicarious liability.
The family car doctrine and vicarious liability hold that when parents give their teens access to a vehicle, they take full responsibility for whatever occurs behind the wheel; including medical costs, property damage costs and lost wages.
Vicarious liability allows a party to file suit against parents if they can prove that their teen driver was violating instructions given to them, such as substance abuse or reckless driving behavior. This may include substance use or previous instances of reckless driving behavior.
Depending on whether or not the teenager is covered under their parent’s policy, an accident may be covered up to its limit; if however, injuries were suffered as a result of it then additional compensation can be sought via filing a personal injury suit against their teen driver.
Negligent Parenting
Every licensed driver, including teenagers, owes an obligation to exercise reasonable care and comply with road regulations. When they fail in this obligation and cause injuries to another, that person can claim for medical expenses, lost wages, pain and suffering compensation as well as vehicle damages from such acts of negligence.
While most states do not hold parents liable for the negligent acts of their minor children, there are exceptions. Some have what is referred to as the family car doctrine which holds drivers liable for damage they cause while operating vehicles that belong or are leased or borrowed from them.
Negligent entrustment laws are increasingly prevalent and typically hold parents liable if they knew or should have known that their teenager posed a significant danger on the road, such as by having multiple accidents or limited driving experience. Parents found breaking these laws may be required to pay damages for any harm caused.
