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vkimbj · Apr 12, 2008, 07:01 PM

I rented a car for my niece in 04 she was struck by a hit and run driver now the rental agency wants me to pay for it even thou she was listed as an authorized driver I wasn't in the vehicle at the time of the crash isn't she resposible or at least partly tell me what I can do we live in south Florida

Handynca · Apr 12, 2008, 08:22 PM

Generally speaking, if the contract was in your name (you said "I rented a car for my niece") and you signed the contract (rental agreement) you are ultimately considered the responsible party for the vehicle.

From the rental agency's point of view they rented the vehicle to you and you entered into that agreement with them. Your niece was declared as an individual who might also drive the vehicle and therefore if something were to happen to the vehicle while in her possession you would not void the terms and protections of the contract because she was authorized to drive it up front.

Authorizing her as a driver does not enlist her as a party to the contract's terms since parties become obligated to a contract by signing their name and acknowledging that they agree to the terms, etc.

The bottom line is that if she was not one of the signers to the original agreement, the car company is not going to consider her as a party to go after for anything owed. Your only recourse toward your niece would be to seek reimbursement. Hopefully that would be up front and not after the fact by you having to sue her...

JudyKayTee · Apr 13, 2008, 07:36 AM

Originally Posted by Handynca

Generally speaking, if the contract was in your name (you said "I rented a car for my niece") and you signed the contract (rental agreement) you are ultimately considered the responsible party for the vehicle.

From the rental agency's point of view they rented the vehicle to you and you entered into that agreement with them. Your niece was declared as an individual who might also drive the vehicle and therefore if something were to happen to the vehicle while in her possession you would not void the terms and protections of the contract because she was authorized to drive it up front.

Authorizing her as a driver does not enlist her as a party to the contract's terms since parties become obligated to a contract by signing their name and acknowledging that they agree to the terms, etc.

The bottom line is that if she was not one of the signers to the original agreement, the car company is not going to consider her as a party to go after for anything owed. Your only recourse toward your niece would be to seek reimbursement. Hopefully that would be up front and not after the fact by you having to sue her...

Absolutely correct and you beat me to it.

Why isn't the rental car company's insurance paying for the damage? Did you have full coverage?

Fr_Chuck · Apr 13, 2008, 07:41 AM

Yes, as agreed, in the end, the person who signed and is named as the main person in the contract will be responsible. You can go back and sue your niece for your loses. And you can look at your neices pesonal car insurance in some cases if she has her own car with insurance.

But of course the rental agencies insurance should be paying and you wouild only be liable for the deductable normally.

vkimbj · Apr 13, 2008, 05:06 PM

Originally Posted by vkimbj

i rented a car for my niece in 04 she was struck by a hit and run driver now the rental agency wants me to pay for it even thou she was listed as an authorized driver I wasnt in the vehicle at the time of the crash isnt she resposible or at least partly tell me what i can do we live in south florida

Thanks for answering about car rental I still have some questions yes I said I rented the car for my niece its because it was on my card but she was listed as second driver and she also signed the contract am I still liable for the whole amout also she said she would get a notarized letter taking full responsibility if came down to it should it be some kind of deductible I have to pay instead of the whole amout they want me to pay 17,000 dollars for a used car that just doesn't sound right

vkimbj · Apr 13, 2008, 05:08 PM

Originally Posted by JudyKayTee

Absolutely correct and you beat me to it.

Why isn't the rental car company's insurance paying for the damage? Did you have full coverage?

I have no idea but her insurance at the time paid money to the other passengers in the car and she used her cars insurance on the car for coverage

Fr_Chuck · Apr 13, 2008, 05:17 PM

Yes, they can come after you for the full amount if they want to, remember you were the principal renter and she listed as a driver, they could come after her also or just her, but they will come after who they expects to have the money to pay them, and also since your credit card was used, I am surprised they have not just charged the amount to your card ( or tried to )
And no matter what she signs, you can use that to collect from her after they make you pay.

But yes, on the contract what type of insurance did you take when you rented the car.

vkimbj · Apr 13, 2008, 05:41 PM

Originally Posted by Fr_Chuck

yes, they can come after you for the full amount if they want to, remember you were the principal renter and she listed as a driver, they could come after her also or just her, but they will come after who they expects to have the money to pay them, and also since your credit card was used, I am surprised they have not just charged the amount to your card ( or tried to )
And no matter what she signs, you can use that to collect from her after they make you pay.

But yes, on the contract what type of insurance did you take when you rented the car.

She used her own insurance for coverage instead of there's I think she had progressive

JudyKayTee · Apr 14, 2008, 06:16 AM

Originally Posted by vkimbj

i have no idea but her insurance at the time paid money to the other passengers in the car and she used her cars insurance on the car for coverage

Florida is a no fault State so no matter what the circumstances her insurance would have paid for the injuries to her passengers.

jjmcguire · Apr 15, 2008, 01:36 PM

Since you rented the car, you should turn this in to your auto insurer. Your policy may have coverage for the damage to the rental car. This is a bit of a tricky point though as you didn't rent the car for yourself.

Handynca · Apr 19, 2008, 12:07 AM

Rather than to continue this thread with a lot of speculation it would seem to me that all of the answers will be in the rental contract itself. If you still have it and would like for me to read through it and explain what I see, I would be happy to. I can't interpret it in conjunction with any nuiances of Florida law since I do not know them but in my past life I was the Dir of Contracting for a very large healthcare system. My day-to-day was reading, writing and negotiating contracts. You would just need to scan it (feel free to make a copy and white-out anything you feel is too sensitive to send) and send it to me. If you want to do that let me know and I will send you my personal e-mail via a private message.

If you think you have all of your questions answered, so much the better and I am glad we were all able to be of service...

JudyKayTee · Apr 19, 2008, 06:17 AM

Originally Posted by Handynca

Rather than to continue this thread with a lot of speculation it would seem to me that all of the answers will be in the rental contract itself. If you still have it and would like for me to read through it and explain what I see, I would be happy to. I can't interpret it in conjunction with any nuiances of Florida law since I do not know them but in my past life I was the Dir of Contracting for a very large healthcare system. My day-to-day was reading, writing and negotiating contracts. You would just need to scan it (feel free to make a copy and white-out anything you feel is too sensitive to send) and send it to me. If you want to do that let me know and I will send you my personal e-mail via a private message.

If you think you have all of your questions answered, so much the better and I am glad we were all able to be of service...

I am not speculating - I'm an accident investigator.

Handynca · Apr 19, 2008, 01:14 PM

JudyKayTee,

... not directed at you specifically... the comment was more a general one since there were a lot of questions posed by multiple posters... nothing personal I assure you and wouldn't dream of stepping on your advise since it was obvious that it came from a place of knowledge. Sorry if there was a sense that I was discounting what you personally had to say.

JudyKayTee · Apr 19, 2008, 02:02 PM

Originally Posted by Handynca

JudyKayTee,

...not directed at you specifically...the comment was more a general one since there were a lot of questions posed by multiple posters...nothing personal I assure you and wouldn't dream of stepping on your advise since it was obvious that it came from a place of knowledge. Sorry if there was a sense that I was discounting what you personally had to say.

Ok, no problem - maybe I'm in a prickly mood today. Either too much or not enough coffee.

I was also going to mention that some of the car rental places have the contract info on line. No guarantee this is the contract that was signed but it sort of points "you" in the right direction.