Teen Driver Car Accidents & Legal Concerns
For teenagers across America, one of the most exciting things about turning 16 is often trying to get a driver's license. A license can bring a sense of freedom. It marks the approach of adulthood. Parents, however, may be more ambivalent about what this birthday and the privilege of driving mean. They should understand the potential liability to which they may be exposed if their teenager causes a crash.
Car accidents are a leading cause of death for American teenagers. More specifically, data suggest that teenage boys have a much higher rate of fatal crashes than teenage girls, while teens driving with teen passengers are more likely to crash than teens driving on their own.
Why are these accidents so common? Most teens underestimate danger or don't identify risks at all due to lack of experience. They are more likely to speed and allow insufficient distance between cars. Leaving enough distance between two cars is important when trying to avoid a rear-end accident. Teenagers are also more likely to text while driving or engage in other distracted behaviors that increase the risk of crashes.
Who Is Responsible When a Teen Injures Someone in A Crash?
Usually, teenagers are covered under their parents' insurance policies when they start driving. When a teen is insured and causes an accident, the insurance company will have a duty to step up and defend and indemnify the teenager. Generally, the greater risk of teenage drivers getting into an accident is accounted for in the premium that is charged to the parent. However, the profit-oriented culture of insurance companies encourages the denial of legitimate claims. If an insurance company fails to defend and indemnify when appropriate, a parent can bring a bad faith action against the company.
If the teenager is not covered, or if the insurance is not enough to account for a serious crash, a victim may want to know whether they can sue the teenager's parents. States take varying approaches to parental liability. For example, certain states have laws that may make a parent liable for an accident caused by their teenager if the parent signed the application for the teenager's driver's license. Some states also have laws that may make a vehicle owner liable for an accident caused by someone else driving their car. This could cover a teenager driving a parent's car.
If none of these laws applies, a parent still might be held liable if they know that their child is an incompetent or reckless driver who poses an elevated risk to other people on the road, but the parent does not take steps to address this risk. This theory of liability is usually called negligent entrustment. Meanwhile, a theory known as the family purpose doctrine may apply when a teenager gets behind the wheel to pursue a family purpose, which tends to be defined broadly. (This sometimes overlaps with statutes making a vehicle owner liable for someone else driving their car.)
