Question
My husband was recently in a little fender bender on the interstate. He was hauling cattle and the traffic came to a stop. He got stopped in time, but the cattle shifted, causing him to nudge into the rear end of an SUV. They pulled off and the damage seemed minimal, so they exchanged insurance info and went on their way. Well, this last week my husband went to pick up his last paycheck (he quit because he found a job where he could be home more) and was told that he owed his employer $39.10 for damages from the accident. Supposedly the owner of the SUV turned it in to insurance and the estimate came back as $785 to fix it. His employer told him that he was not going to let the insurance policy cover it as it would make his premiums go up, instead he took the amount out of his paycheck. Can he do this? My husband never signed anything stating that he would be responsible for any deductibles/damages to the truck.
Kerri
Answer
First, the employer is obligated to notify his insurance carrier as it would violate his contract to settle the claim without them. When he purchased the policy, he gave the right to protect his interest and settle claims.
Secondly, if your husband did not give express written permission, either in a lease, employment contract or other, I think you have a legal matter that could best be handled by seeking the advice of an attorney. Perhaps you might want to try posting a question regarding this for Opie.
Answer
Since his employer is not reporting it to the insurance company, does this mean they are also not going to report it to DAC sevices?
Maybe eating the cost, since hubby was at fault anyway,this will keep his DAC report clean and not show a at fault accident..
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http://www.hlatty.com/FSL5CS/Articles/articles4.asp
Answer
A waitress drops a tray of drinks, and there is broken glass all over the place. Her employer can give her a verbal reprimand, she can be given a written reprimand; she can be suspended without pay; and, she can even be fired. But, what Federal and State labor laws universally state - is that she can NOT be forced to pay for the cost of the accident - unless it can be proven that she was acting outside the scope of her authority when the accident occurred, or the accident was caused while she was acting with willful disregard for the safety of others. r/ jim.
Answer
I understand what you are saying Jim, but we all know that with trucking, the rules have been bent and twisted beyond recognition at times.
If in fact, the driver is a "true" employee and all the documation reflects the same, then I would agree with you 100%. But, we do not know what he may have agreed to at the time of employment. Did he sign an employment contract? Did he sign a contract labor agreement? We don't know.
So, until all those questions have been investigated and answered, consulting with Opie may be in her best interest.