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Texas Supreme Court Rules Car Owner Not Liable in Borrower's Drunk-Driving Crash
The Texas Supreme Court recently upheld an appeals court ruling indicating that a driver could not be held liable for negligent entrustment after a co-worker, who borrowed his car, killed two motorists in a drunk-driving accident.
October 20, 2011 /Mens Interest PR News/ -- The Texas Supreme Court recently upheld an appeals court ruling indicating that a driver could not be held liable for negligent entrustment after a co-worker killed two motorists in a drunk-driving accident. According to the Supreme Court's holding in G & H Towing v. Magee, William Colson and Joseph Violante were employed by G & H as tugboat quartermasters. While they were assigned to the same tugboat, the two worked different schedules. Colson would work for several days and then Violante would relieve him.
Violante commonly borrowed Colson's truck to drive himself home. In one instance, Violante drove Colson's truck after becoming drunk at a bar. Violante was subsequently involved in a crash that killed Douglas and Lois Magee. Violante was charged with, and convicted of, intoxication manslaughter.
The Magee children brought suit against Colson and G & H Towing, alleging a number of negligence claims, including negligent hiring on the part of G & H, and negligent entrustment against Colson for allowing Violante to use his truck in such a reckless manner. The trial court granted both defendants' motions for summary judgment and the case was dismissed. The Magees sought to sever the judgments, believing that G & H was still liable on its negligence claims and the trial court granted this motion.
The Magees appealed both summary judgment rulings to the First District Court of Appeals in Houston. The appellate court held that the Magees did not show any evidence indicating that they could prove any of the elements in their negligent entrustment claim against Colson, and upheld the trial court's summary judgment ruling. However, it reversed the ruling against G & H Towing, because G & H's motion only addressed its direct liability in the accident instead of both the vicarious and direct liability claims asserted by the Magees.
Proving Negligent Entrustment of a Vehicle in Texas
While the Supreme Court eventually reversed the appeals court on unrelated grounds, negligent entrustment still looms as an important question under Texas law. A plaintiff may recover money damages under negligent entrustment if the following elements are proven:
(1) The owner entrusted the vehicle to the driver;
(2) The driver was incompetent, unlicensed or reckless;
(3) At the time of entrustment, the owner knew (or should have known) that the driver was incompetent, unlicensed or reckless;
(4) The driver was negligent on the occasion in question; and
(5) The driver's negligence was the proximate cause of the accident
Evidence of the defendant's actual knowledge of the driver's propensity to drive drunk is critical. As stated before, the appeals court held that Colson had no direct knowledge of Violante's proclivity to drive after drinking. More importantly, the court ruled that Colson did not have an independent duty to investigate Violante's driving record. So long as a person has an active, unrestricted driver's license, there is no affirmative duty to investigate one's driving record before loaning a vehicle to another person.
One Dallas auto accident lawyer says that evidence that shows some type of knowledge about a driver's habits and tendencies could, however, be useful in future negligent entrustment cases to prove that an owner should have known better than to lend a car to a dangerous driver, but such knowledge would have to go beyond mere premonitions, rumors or guesses about a driver's abilities.
The preceding article is meant to be overview of applicable law and should not be regarded as legal advice. If you have questions about negligent entrustment in Texas or know someone who has been injured because of it, contacting an experienced attorney is advised.
Article provided by Weinstein Law
Visit us at www.longhornlawyer.com
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