Minimize Liability When Using Personal Vehicles

While the circumstances may be out of your control, your organization could still be liable for what happened. Minimize your risk with strong driver selection and qualification procedures.

It is important to note that an organization can still be held legally liable for someone driving their personal vehicle for organizational purposes. This is because the owner of the vehicle is not directly responsible for the reason the vehicle was being driven at the time of the accident. In other words, since the driver was driving for business reasons at the time of the accident, that is essentially the same as driving a vehicle that is owned by the organization.

Organizations must practice strong driver selection and qualification controls for all drivers, including those that drive their personal vehicles for the organization. Your MVR policy also applies to these drivers, and they must be subject to the same restrictions as any other driver.

Other steps to take include the following:

• Require that drivers driving personal vehicles must purchase insurance that is adequate to the level of use. Discuss adequate insurance levels with your agent.
• Require verification of insurance prior to permitting the driver to drive for business purposes.
• Continue to verify active insurance policies at least annually or more often based on your organizational policy.

For additional Loss Control guidance, please visit the Plan & Protect safety hub.