What Qualifies as a “Company Vehicle”?
A “company vehicle” is any car, truck, van or SUV that a business owns or leases. This could be a sedan that the company’s salespeople drive to and from customers’ locations, a panel van that technicians use to make service calls or a large truck the company uses to make deliveries. While company vehicles will often have logos, wraps or other branding, this is not always the case. In fact, even a car or SUV that looks just like yours could be a company vehicle.
Common Factors in Company Vehicle Accidents
Company vehicle accidents can result from a variety of different factors. This includes all of the factors that can lead to accidents between privately-owned vehicles, plus more related to the vehicle’s company ownership. For example, some of the most common factors in company vehicle accidents include:
- Distracted driving
- Drowsy driving
- Failure to yield
- Running red lights and stop signs
- Speeding
- Inadequate driver training or experience
- Inadequate vehicle maintenance
Companies have a legal obligation to ensure that they are not putting dangerous drivers or dangerous vehicles on the road. Yet, many companies allow (or expect) their employees to talk on the phone while driving, and many encourage (or force) their employees to meet strict deadlines and log long hours behind the wheel. These factors play a role in many company vehicle accidents. When they do, the company can be held legally accountable.