Florida Vehicle Owner Liability During Consignment
Florida law general holds vehicle owners vicariously liable negligent actions of those driving their vehicles with their permission pursuant to the dangerous instrumentality doctrine. Holding the owner liable provides accident victims with another source of recovery when the vehicle driver is not the owner and therefore may not be uninsured. When the owner gives another person permission to drive the vehicle, the owner commits himself or herself to that person’s judgment and therefore is liable for the driver’s actions.
There are, however, limits to the owner’s liability. Pursuant to section 324.021(9)(b)(3), Florida Statutes, an owner who has loaned his or her vehicle to another is only liable for up to $50,000 property damage and $100,000 per person and $300,000 per incident for bodily injury. If the permissive driver has less than $500,000 coverage for property damage and bodily injury combined, however, the owner may be liable for up to an additional $500,000 in economic damages, reduced by the amounts paid by the permissive user and any insurance or self-insurance covering the permissive user.
In the recent case of Youngblood v. Villanueva, the trial court applied this section when the vehicle’s owner had delivered the vehicle to a man employed by an automobile sales company to consign it. That man drove the vehicle for his own person use and had an accident resulting in the death of another person. The accident victim’s estate filed a wrongful death action against the owner, the driver, the automobile sales company and others.
The vehicle owner argued that man’s driving of the vehicle constituted a theft or conversion, and the owner was therefore not liable. The trial court initially granted summary judgment in favor of the owner, but the Third District reversed, finding there were still genuine issues of material fact. The issue went to the jury, who ultimately rejected the defendant’s contention.
The Estate settled with all of the defendants except the vehicle owner prior to trial, for a total of $78,000.00. The case against the owner then proceeded to trial. The jury awarded the victim’s Estate $9,043.75 in economic expenses related to the funeral and burial. The jury also awarded $190,000 in noneconomic damages for the pain and suffering the wife experienced. The defendant then sought a set-off of the pretrial settlement amounts. The trial court determined that the noneconomic portion of the pre-trial settlements was $74,462.00 and deducted that amount from the non-economic damage award. The court then capped the non-economic damages at $100,000. The court also reduced the economic damages award by the economic damages portion of the pretrial settlements and the PIP payout, leaving a total of $505.75 in economic damages.
Looking at both statutory and case law, the Second District found that this scenario did not constitute a loan. The plain meaning of the statutory language would not support applying the cap in this scenario. The owner had even argued that the driver was not a permissive user at all, but had instead stolen or converted the vehicle. The district court therefore reversed the portion of the judgment applying the cap.
As to the set-off, the district court pointed out that prior Florida Supreme Court case law specifically held that sections 46.015 and 768.041, relied upon by the trial court in setting off the settlements against the jury awards, did not apply to noneconomic damages. Thus, the district court reversed the portion of the judgment setting off the settlement amounts against the noneconomic damages award.
How We Can Help
If you, a friend or a family member find themselves in a situation such as this, please call the Law Office of Scott A. Ferris, P.A. at 305 670-3330 right away. Scott A. Ferris, Esq. is a licensed civil law attorney who has been practicing law since 1987. He is available whenever you need him to pursue your rights. Please learn about our firm at www.FerrisLawFirm.com.