Booze Blues
Employee DUIs could become your problem.
One of your employees has a few drinks at a company dinner, runs
a red light on the drive home, and hits and seriously injures the
occupants of another car. Is your company responsible? Though the
laws vary by state, the simple answer is yes. And you need to be
sure your insurance will cover it.
"When the employee is acting in the course and scope of his
or her duties, then the employer is vicariously liable if that
employee injures someone," says attorney Jon Miller, a partner
with Berger, Kahn, Shafton, Moss, Figler, Simon & Gladstone in
Irvine, California.
As the holiday party season approaches, it's a good time to
consider the issue of drunken driving and liquor liability.
Essentially, Miller says, if an employee consumes alcohol on
company time or at a business-related social function, the employer
can be held liable if they're involved in a crash that causes
injury or death.
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Prevention is the ideal protection. Restrict the availability of
alcohol at company functions, and provide rides to anyone who needs
them without repercussions. But company policies don't always
prevent problems. Shield your company with adequate
insurance-general liability for the business and auto insurance on
vehicles and drivers.
And if the drunk employee is injured? "The employer's
workers' compensation insurance will [go into effect],"
says Miller, "and that's the sole legal avenue the
employee has against the employer."
Jacquelyn Lynn is a freelance business writer in Orlando,
Florida.
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