Momentum - Business to Business Online Magazine MOMENTUM January 2019 | Page 23
Business Law
Do You Know Who Is
Driving For Your Company?
By: Trisha A. Barita
Barita & Keough Law Firm, PLLC
[email protected]
Trisha A. Barita is a 14-year Licensed Texas Attorney
practicing in Business & Employment Law & Owner of
Barita & Keough Law Firm
As we start a new year in 2019, it can be a good time for
business owners to reevaluate what risks they are taking
in their business and how they could possibly limit those
risks or best protect against them. One of those risks is
people driving on behalf of the company. Most business
owners may feel they have a good understanding of the
risks and liabilities that they face in running the operation
of their business and especially on who is driving on
behalf of the company. But consider this scenario,
Company A has a company owned vehicle allowing only
designated delivery driver employees use those vehicles
to drive and deliver Company A products. Company A
feels protected because they made a copy of each of the
delivery drivers’ licenses upon hire, ran a standard DPS
background check, and has them insured under
Company A’s insurance. Yet, one day Company A sends
the file clerk out in his own car to pick up a lunch order
for some visiting customers in the office and he gets in a
car accident. Company A could be liable and get sued for
the personal injury and physical damages under various
causes of action under Texas law including respondent
superior, negligent hiring, supervision, and training.
Company A has no knowledge of whether file clerk is a
great driver or has a suspended license from two DWI’s.
Further, suppose Company A is working on a project with
Company B, Company A could find themselves liable for
Company B’s employees under a borrowed employee
doctrine if Company A has a right to control the
employees. As an additional concern for companies or
non-profits that use volunteers, under certain facts, a
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MOMENTUM / January 2019
company may be liable for the acts of a volunteer when
the company is exercising control over the volunteer and
this includes driving on behalf of the company. So
moving into 2019, companies should consider whether
company driving policies need to be updated, revisit
insurance coverage issues as it relates to driving, run
necessary background checks with proper authorizations,
revise Independent Contractor Agreements, and
consider the risks as a company when you conduct your
work throughout the year so that you can make
adjustments to limit exposure and above all else at least
know who is driving on behalf of the company.
This information is not legal advice and due to the rapidly
changing nature of the law and any reliance on
information provided by outside sources, this article and
its writer and publisher do not make any warranty or
guarantee concerning the accuracy or reliability of the
content in this article. The attorney and publication
present the information in this article for informational
purposes only and not to be a substitute for legal advice
of a licensed attorney.