What Is Negligent Entrustment?
A person who entrust his or her vehicle to someone else must exercise reasonable care in ensuring the driver will be safe. To successfully hold a vehicle owner liable for negligent entrustment, you’ll have to show that:
- The owner had an exclusive or superior right of control of the vehicle
- The owner knew, or should have known that the driver was not able to operate the vehicle safely but allowed him or her to drive anyways
- The act of entrustment proximately caused your injuries
- The issue of the owner’s knowledge would be central to your case. You would have to show that the owner had either actual or constructive knowledge of the driver’s lack of ability. If the driver was drunk, the owner knew it, and the owner let him or her drive anyways, the owner had actual knowledge of the driver’s incompetence.
Knowledge with Negligent Entrustment
Proving constructive knowledge would require a showing that the owner should have known the driver was unsafe. An owner needs to exercise reasonable due diligence in ensuring the driver has a license and a relatively clean driving record before letting him or her borrow the car. If the owner fails to do so, and it runs out after the fact that the driver was unlicensed, the court will assume the owner had constructive knowledge of the driver’s inability to operate the vehicle safely.
Proximate causation is a complex issue that needs to be treated separately. For our purposes, however, we can consider it as an issue of foreseeability. Basically, to hold the owner responsible, you would need to demonstrate that it was foreseeable that, owing to the driver’s incompetence, an accident could result if he or she were allowed to drive the vehicle.
Example of Negligent Entrustment
Imagine that a 17-year-old son returns home from school one day, and informs his father that “a huge party” is planned at a friend’s house that evening. The son humbly asks for his father’s permission to use the car that night, and promises that he will behave responsibly. Unfortunately, the son has received two tickets in the past year for underage drinking, and dad is well aware of this. Dad also knows that his son has received two speeding tickets in the past year. Reluctantly, dad concedes and allows his son to use the car for the evening. The phone then rings at 1:00 a.m. and dad answers it. Apparently, his son decided that having a few drinks was the best way to fit in at the party. While driving home, the son rear-ended another vehicle and caused severe injuries to the passengers. He is also arrested for driving under the influence of alcohol.
In all lawsuits involving motor vehicle accidents, our attention as lawyers is naturally directed towards the conduct of the drivers themselves. However, is it possible that someone who wasn’t driving the vehicle, or even physically present at the time of the accident, could also be liable for it? The answer is yes, and it should cause all car owners to think twice about lending their vehicle to just anyone. In the above scenario, the injured passengers could sue the boy’s father for negligent entrustment of his vehicle. Under the law, the defendant must be someone who either owns or has a “superior right of control” as to the vehicle involved. To be a proper defendant in a negligent entrustment claim, you must have the authority to grant or withhold consent to someone else’s operation of the vehicle. In other words, the defendant-driver needed permission to drive the car in the first place.
Why Hold the Vehicle Owner Responsible?
If you’re injured in an auto accident, and the at-fault driver’s insurance or assets are insufficient to cover your losses, you’ll want to find a source of compensation elsewhere. If the driver was working at the time of the accident, you could try to sue his or her employer under the theory of Respondeat Superior. Or, if the at-fault driver was not the owner of the vehicle involved in the crash, you could try to sue the vehicle’s owner for negligent entrustment.
Houston Negligent Entrustment Lawyer
If you or a loved one has been injured in a car accident, and the person who hit you did not own the vehicle, an underlying claim for negligent entrustment may be discovered. Our Attorney at the Pascoe Law Firm can help guide you through your legal options available to you. Please contact our offices today if you suspect that your injuries can be related to any type of negligent entrustment scenario. Visit our main car accident page for more information or call us at 713-829-4317.
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