Hit by a Company or Delivery Vehicle: Who Is Responsible?

Why it matters who the driver works for

When a delivery van, a contractor’s truck or a salesperson’s car hits you, there is a question that does not come up in an ordinary crash: was the driver working?

If they were, the company may be responsible for the crash along with the driver. That matters because a business usually carries much more insurance than an individual driver. A driver with a minimum personal policy may be backed by an employer with a commercial policy worth many times that.

The rule: employers answer for employees on the job

In California, an employer is generally responsible for harm its employee causes while acting within the scope of employment. Lawyers call it respondeat superior. It does not matter whether the employer did anything wrong itself. If the employee was doing the job, the employer answers for the employee’s negligence.

That generally covers:

• Driving a company vehicle on company business
• Driving their own car for work: making deliveries, going between job sites, visiting clients
• A special errand for the employer, even on the way home

When it usually does not apply

• The ordinary commute. Driving to and from work is generally treated as the employee’s own time, under what is called the going-and-coming rule. There are exceptions, such as when the employer requires the employee to use their own car for work, or the employee is on call.
• A personal detour. If the driver had left work to do something purely personal, the employer may not be responsible for that part of the trip.
• Independent contractors. A company generally is not responsible for an independent contractor’s driving the way it is for an employee’s. Many delivery drivers are labeled contractors, and whether the label holds up depends on the facts.

The company’s own mistakes

Separately from the employee rule, a company can be responsible for its own negligence:

• Negligent entrustment: letting someone drive a company vehicle when it knew, or should have known, they were a dangerous driver
• Negligent hiring or supervision: hiring a driver with a bad record, or ignoring complaints
• Poor maintenance: sending out a vehicle with known defects
• Unrealistic schedules that push drivers to speed

Delivery companies

Package delivery is often done through layers of companies: the brand on the box, a delivery contractor, and the driver. Which of them is responsible, and which insurance applies, depends on the contracts between them and the facts of the crash. It is one of the main reasons these cases should be looked at early.

Large commercial trucks have their own rules. Read truck accidents.

What to do at the scene

• Photograph the vehicle, including any company name, logo, phone number and DOT number on the side
• Get the driver’s name and the company they work for, along with their insurance
• Ask whether they were working, and write down exactly what they say
• Look for cameras. Many commercial vehicles have them. Read how to save video after a crash
• Get the police report number

Talk to Boyd

If you were hit by someone who was working, call. Finding every responsible company, and every policy, is where these cases are won. The consultation is free, and Boyd takes the call himself: (714) 656-2400.