If my daughter goes to collage in a differant state and becomes a resident there, since we put the car in her name and she has her own policy, can we still be held liable for an accident?
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If my daughter goes to collage in a differant state and becomes a resident there, since we put the car in her name and she has her own policy, can we still be held liable for an accident?
She is 20 years old.
Asked on January 12, 2015 under Accident Law, Mississippi
Answers:
SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 9 years ago | Contributor
If she owns the car (and has her own insurance policy) and is a legal adult, you should not be responsible for any accident(s) of hers; one adult is responsible for the car accidents of another adult to whom they are not married only if the one who got into the accident is driving the first adult's car with permission.
That said, if you pay for everything or most everything car-related for her--e.g. you paid for the car; you provide her money for her insurance; etc.--it is possible that the other side, if there is an accident and you are sued, may try to claim that it is really your car and that fact taht you "put the car in her name" is just a pretext or subterfuge to avoid liability--and so since the real situation is that you are the owner, you could be sued. There is some risk, therefore, if you have been funding the car for her, and especially if it was your car which was recently transferred to her name.
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