Q: Question about parents liability for their minor child in an auto accident...see below
(In California) I was injured when a 16 year old driver hit me on my motorcycle. Police report & she was clearly at fault. As a minor, she is on her parents insurance policy that only has a 50K limit for my medical. My medical exceeds that limit by twice that. CA vehicle code 17707 says her parents are liable. Can I sue her parents for additional medical bills and my lost wages for 7 weeks of work ?
A: Yes, you can. What makes you think that they can pay? Or that they won't file for bankruptcy if you pursue their personal funds? No one wants to chase a judgment for 10 years for some monthly payments. If you carried Underinsured Motorist insurance in excess of $50k, you can recover from that. Otherwise, unless these people are wealthy (and if they were they would have more than $50k in liabililty insurance), you are probably not going to get more than $50k.
A:
The reality is not whether they are liable, but rather if they can pay.
Their ins co will not settle without full waiver.
If you are driving a motorcycle you need very high limits and UM/UIM and an umbrella policy.
Did you have that?
In my experience you should not drive a MC without High ins.
Justia Ask a Lawyer is a forum for consumers to get answers to basic legal questions. Any information sent through Justia Ask a Lawyer is not secure and is done so on a non-confidential basis only.
The use of this website to ask questions or receive answers does not create an attorney–client relationship between you and Justia, or between you and any attorney who receives your information or responds to your questions, nor is it intended to create such a relationship. Additionally, no responses on this forum constitute legal advice, which must be tailored to the specific circumstances of each case. You should not act upon information provided in Justia Ask a Lawyer without seeking professional counsel from an attorney admitted or authorized to practice in your jurisdiction. Justia assumes no responsibility to any person who relies on information contained on or received through this site and disclaims all liability in respect to such information.
Justia cannot guarantee that the information on this website (including any legal information provided by an attorney through this service) is accurate, complete, or up-to-date. While we intend to make every attempt to keep the information on this site current, the owners of and contributors to this site make no claims, promises or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness or adequacy of the information contained in or linked to from this site.
