If someone asks to borrow your car, one potential problem that will likely concern you is the reality that they could get into an accident. Insurance policies can vary from one case to the next, but insurance often follows the vehicle. This means that your insurance would likely still have to pay if someone else got into an accident in your car.
But, what about traffic tickets? Say that the person gets pulled over while driving your vehicle. Is this challenge going to have any impact on you?
It depends on the type of ticket
The ins and outs of tickets can be very different from one situation to the next. Most of the time, the driver is going to be responsible for an infraction that inspires a law enforcement officer to write a ticket in the first place. For example, if someone gets a speeding ticket in your car, that shouldn’t have any impact on you personally. Your insurance rates won’t change. You don’t have to pay the fine. It goes on that person’s driving record and they are responsible for it.
However, you could be responsible for a ticket given out by a red-light camera. If the other person runs a red light in your vehicle, the camera likely doesn’t have the ability to determine who is driving the car. Instead, it just reads the license plate. The owner of the car is responsible because they are the only one who can be definitively linked to that event. Therefore, you may have to pay a red-light ticket even though you were not in the vehicle at the time.
Naturally, some drivers will claim that this is unfair. They didn’t commit the traffic violation, and a police officer didn’t even see the event take place. But the law has been interpreted to mean that the owner is responsible, whether or not that owner believes that determination is fair.
What options do you have?
If you do get a traffic ticket, you may be very interested in exploring your legal options. Remember that you do not have to simply accept the ticket. There could be a variety of reasons to seek legal guidance and fight that ticket, so it’s quite important to know about all the legal obligations you have and what fees you could be held responsible for.