What Happens If My Car Is Involved In A Crash?

Let’s say you loan your car to your best friend. While driving your car, your friend is distracted by their cell phone and causes a car crash. That crash resulted in another person getting horribly injured. That horribly injured person hires an attorney to recover money for the injuries and sue both your friend and you.

“Is that legal?! I wasn’t even driving the car!” You might say. Well, if you’re in Florida, then you can absolutely be sued. Loaning a vehicle to a person who is unfit to drive the vehicle could lead to an accident that would cause injury. As such, the law would find you liable for the injuries.

Now, the catch is that there is a defense. Specifically, there is an affirmative defense that your lawyer would need to raise early in the case. This affirmative defense keeps the injured person from recovering any more money than what is available through your insurance policy. So you would not have to pay a penny more than what your insurance is worth.

If you have any quesitons about liability from loaning a car or the affirmative defense above, feel free to call Waggener Law at 727-685-8000.