Q: A 16 year old caught driving on KY intermediate license with too many passengers in the vehicle. How serious is this?
Another teen rear ended this 16 year old while she was driving illegal and he has had to pay for everything because he rear ended her. A settlement is pending thru insurance even though there was no injury. My point is she should not have been on the road at all. Shouldn't it be her fault? Sort of like rear ending someone who's DUI. Or if nothing else, a no fault?
A: The intermediate license is a minor traffic offense. The person who rear ended the other person is at fault, license or no license, dui or no dui, because that is the direct and proximate cause of the accident.
A:
While driving without a license creates a presumption of negligence by KY statute, the courts hold that there must be a causal connection that is the proximate cause for the accident. With or without the license the fault for the accident is what matters. Basically the presumption can be rebutted by showing the other person caused the accident.
Quoting from case: "Where the facts of an accident do not show any causal connection between the violation of a statute and the injury suffered, then such violation is irrelevant and plays no part in the determination of liability."
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