In some ways, an accident involving a company car is similar to any other traffic accident. However, crashes that involve a company or commercial vehicle can be more complex. As the accident victim, it is in your best interest to take specific measures to protect your legal rights. You could be entitled to compensation for your medical bills, lost pay, property damage, and other losses.
Keep reading to learn more if you're injured in an accident with a company car.
What Is a Company Car?
A company car is a vehicle owned by a corporate or business entity and may include:
-Fleet cars
-Delivery trucks
-18-wheeler tractor-trailers
-Vans
-Motorcoaches
Other types of commercial vehicles
Often, employees are required to have delivery driver insurance or commercial car insurance for transporting clients in the event of such an accident.
Frequent Causes of Company Car Accidents
Like other crashes, negligence is usually the cause of company car accidents. Negligence is a legal term used to describe a person's failure to take reasonable measures to prevent harm to others. When someone breaches their duty of care, injuries are often the result.
The most frequent causes of company car accidents include:
1. Inadequate Training - Some vehicles require special training
2. Inexperienced Driver - Insufficient practice to become familiar with the vehicle
3. Pressure to Meet Deadlines - Taking risks or driving recklessly to avoid penalties for late or missed deadlines
4. Speeding - Driving too fast for road, traffic, and weather conditions; exceeding the posted speed limit
5. Impairment/Intoxication - Drunk driving is one form of impairment; others include drug use such as cocaine, marijuana, prescription medicine, or over-the-counter medicine
6. Distractions - Using a handheld cell phone or another mobile device, adjusting the radio or climate control, loud music, drinking or eating while driving
7. Fatigue - Driving too many hours without proper rest, falling asleep at the wheel
8. Failure to yield - Failing to yield the right of way to other motorists, pedestrians, and cyclists
Injuries & Fatalities from a Company Car Accident
Car accidents are a leading cause of death in the United States, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Over 100 Americans lose their lives each day from crash-related injuries, and 2.5 million others suffer injuries that require emergency care.
Accidents involving a company car could result in such injuries as:
-Traumatic brain injury, including concussion
-Whiplash and other neck injuries
-Broken or fractured bones
-Internal bleeding
-Burns
-Mouth and dental injuries
Who Is At-Fault?
In an accident involving a company car, the employee, employer, and even a third party may share liability. If your injuries are extensive, you might need to file more than one insurance claim to cover your economic and emotional damages.
Be aware that companies with a fleet of cars or delivery trucks must carry substantial liability insurance. This coverage is far greater than what an individual driver typically carries.
Nevertheless, determining who pays for your injuries and damages depends on several factors, including the following.
5 Factors that Determine Who Pays for An Injury Claim
1. Was the Employee Within Their Scope of Employment?
Employers can be held accountable for an accident with a company car under the concept of "respondent superior liability." This legal term makes employers generally responsible for what their workers do within their scope of employment.
Suppose someone's job requires them to drive a company car, and they hit you while performing their duties. In that case, their employer can be held financially liable.
2. Did the Employer Property Maintain its Vehicles?
Employers can also be liable for accidents with company cars if they fail to perform regular maintenance, such as replacing brake pads.
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) requires regular inspection reports for certain commercial vehicles. The agency performed over 3.4 million state and federal inspections in 2019. You could hold an employer liable if they failed to make the required maintenance or repairs.
3. Did the Employer Provide Proper Training?
Driving a company car usually requires a commercial driver's license. Furthermore, an employee might need special training and certification depending on the vehicle.
An employer that cuts corners on this safety and training can be held accountable when negligence leads to injuries.
4. Was the Employee Driving Drunk?
Companies that fail to uphold their duty of care to prevent drunk driving car accidents may be held liable. This liability may extend to:
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Company parties that overserve alcohol to employees and allow them to drive a company car.
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Failing to offer free transportation (such as Uber, Lyft, or taxi) to employees who have had too much drink.
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Failing to perform drug and alcohol testing according to any local, state, or federal guidelines.
5. Additional Circumstances that Could Affect Employer Liability
Employees who cause an accident while driving outside the scope of their employment may be personally liable. For example, an employee driving a company car on personal business, such as picking up groceries.
However, accidents in a company car during the drive to and from work are in a gray area for employer liability. If the employee typically uses a company car for commuting, the employer might share the responsibility for injuries and damages.
Protect Your Rights
When someone fails to uphold their duty of care and hurts you, you have the right to seek compensation for your injuries and damages. It doesn't matter if the at-fault driver was using a company car at the time of the accident.
However, any accident involving a delivery van, fleet car, or any other type of commercial vehicle quickly attracts the insurance company's attention. The insurance company will have a team of attorneys and investigators who try to deflect the blame so that they can pay you as little as possible.
You owe it to yourself (and your loved ones) to learn about your legal rights and options to recover damages. A car accident lawyer can explain how you could pursue financial compensation through an insurance claim or personal injury lawsuit.
Most lawyers that accept company car accident cases offer free consultations. Many injury lawyers work on a contingency fee basis, so you don't have to worry about up-front costs or retainer fees. No one plans to be hurt in a company car accident, but there are resources to help you if it happens.
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