If medical equipment was stolen from personal vehicle, am I responsible for replacing it?
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If medical equipment was stolen from personal vehicle, am I responsible for replacing it?
I am a midwife. I deliver babies in people’s homes. As such I am required to carry lots of medical equipment in my car at all times. The equipment is owned by the birth center I work for. My car was broken into and several expensive pieces of equipment were taken. The car was locked. Nothing was clearly visible from looking into the windows. Am I responsible for replacing the stolen equipment or is that
Asked on August 28, 2016 under Employment Labor Law, Alaska
Answers:
SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 8 years ago | Contributor
Legally, you are liable (or responsible) for the equipment if stolen by a third party not under your control (e.g. by some criminal not working for/with you) only if it can be shown that you were negligent, or unreasonably careless, in securing the equipment. For example, if you left obviously valuable equipment visible in a vehicle which was unlocked or had a window open, that degree of carelessness could make you liable. But if you were not negligent in contributing to the theft, you are not liable for the equipment, because you would not have been at fault and did not cause the theft.
That said, bear in mind that if you do not have a written employment contract, you are an employee at will, and your boss could legally terminate you over this, even if you are not legally liable, simply because he is annoyed that he lost equipment from your car.
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