A message to employers from Karen Harned, Executive Director of the Small Business Legal Center for the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB)

“You must understand your legal obligations when you entrust vehicles to your employees. If you’re not concerned about your employees’ driving behaviors, you should be… Drive Safely Work Week is a proactive way for you to demonstrate your concern for your employees and to remind them about the importance of safe driving and the consequences of traffic crashes.”

I applaud the employers that have shown their commitment and dedication to keeping their employees safe on the road, evident by the fact that you are visiting the website of the Network of Employers for Traffic Safety. It is critical that you recognize the potential liabilities employers face from business-related auto accidents.

The NFIB Small Business Legal Center serves as the voice of small business in the nation’s courts and the legal resource for small business owners nationwide. The NFIB Small Business Legal Center is the legal arm of the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB), which is the nation’s leading small business advocacy organization, representing approximately 350,000 members in all 50 states and Washington D.C. As the executive director of the NFIB Small Business Legal Center, I have first-hand knowledge about the problems associated with business-related auto accidents.

According to a survey conducted by the NFIB Research Foundation, more than a third of small-business owners see traffic crashes as the greatest on-the-job hazard.

The number of lawsuits and damages awarded to plaintiffs who file negligence claims against companies and their drivers continues to be very problematic for businesses, as evidenced by the fact that in NFIB surveys small business owners consistently rank the cost and availability of liability insurances as a significant problem.

To avoid these problems and to protect your company’s reputation and financial stability, you must understand your legal obligations when you entrust vehicles to your employees.

If you’re not concerned about your employees’ driving behaviors, you should be. Under the law, you can be found guilty or liable if you knew, or should have known, that your employee was incompetent and created a foreseeable risk of harm to others. In short, employers are responsible for ensuring that unfit employees are not entrusted with the means to do harm to others.

Employers also need to be concerned about injuries to employees sustained while driving on the job. If an accident occurs, the employer may not just be facing a liability claim from the injured party but also a workers’ compensation claim from its employee.

NFIB Research Foundation surveys also consistently show that workers’ compensation issues are among the top ten most important problems faced by small-business owners. Employers should know that negligence principles apply to all employees who drive on company business – even those who only sometimes drive for work. We often think of a “driver” as someone who drives for your business full-time or has a commercial driver’s license, but this is not always the case. An employee driving to meet a client for lunch, an employee making a bank deposit on the way home from work, an employee picking up office supplies, employees who use company pool cars and even family members driving company vehicles—negligent entrustment pertains to all of them.

Remember, it’s not just a jury award that you need to be concerned about. Oftentimes insurance companies will decide to settle cases rather than risk litigating them in court. Imagine what a settlement would do to your bottom line. Would those monetary awards and increased insurance premiums put your organization at risk? Could you survive?

That is why now more than ever, it is critical for employers to be proactive and reduce the risk of motor vehicle crashes within their organization. You should take steps now to minimize your crash risk and protect your assets. Drive Safely Work Week is a proactive way for you to demonstrate your concern for your employees and to remind them about the importance of safe driving and the consequences of traffic crashes.