Should I be 100% responsible for a minor accident in a vehicle that my company rented while I was on company time?
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Should I be 100% responsible for a minor accident in a vehicle that my company rented while I was on company time?
My boss rented vans for us to drive from a rental company and I accidentally scrached the side of mine on a cement gas tank. My boss gave her ins as primary and she signed the contract as the responsible party and didn’t add me as an additional driver. Well now her insurance doesn’t want to cover the damage since she wasn’t driving the van, and so the rental company is now seeking payment from our company. My company wants me to take 100% of the financial responsibility. Is this fair and right? We were both on company time while driving the rental vans.
Asked on September 6, 2011 under Employment Labor Law, Texas
Answers:
B.H.F., Member, Texas State Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 12 years ago | Contributor
Some companies do have provisions that require employees to pay for damages that they cause. Quite frankly, it's not usually an issue because most will have some type of insurance policy to cover everything. They can, though, require you to pay for the damage. However, the choice is still yours in the end, but your choice could affect your employment. You are not required to accept full responsibility... unless you want to. If the company is eventually sued, they will be liable, and then they will have you brought in as a party to the lawsuit. They are liable because the actions which resulted in the damage occurred while you were in the course and scope of their employment. Their defense will be that you are liable not them. Company attorneys will make it very clear (or should make it clear) that they represent the company-- not you. Even though the insurance policies have not kicked in, you may want to talk to your carrier and see if you have a rider that covers damage covered while operating other vehicles or if they will provide you an attorney to represent you. If they cannot provide you with an attorney, you may want to set up a consultation with an attorney to review your policies, the company's policies, and your company handbooks. They will then be able to give you a more specific answer depending on what is contained within those documents.
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