People can get into an accident in all kinds of situations, including while on the job. Whether driving is a required part of your work, or if you have to run the occasional errand for your boss, your employer may be liable for any accidents that you cause, depending on the circumstances.
Vicarious Liability
When one person works for another, that person is considered the agent of the principal. In most instances, an agent is an employee, and the principal is his or her employer. The legal theory of vicarious liability holds that a principal is responsible for the negligent acts of an agent performed during the course of his or her employment.
For example, if an employee negligently ran a stop sign while driving to a job site in a work vehicle and caused an accident, the employer could be liable for the employee’s actions. The person injured in that accident would be able to sue not only the driver of the vehicle, but also the employer as well. …show more content…
First, the employee must have been performing some work-related task. So, the employer of a person who caused an accident while transporting products from one store to another would likely be vicariously liable for any injuries, while the employer of a person who caused an accident after leaving work to go eat lunch might not be.
Second, employers are usually not liable for the intentionally criminal actions of an employee. If an employee assaults someone, the employer will generally not be responsible, even if the assault occurred on the