Hard To Prove Negligent Hiring In Florida – But Not Impossible

In some accident cases, a Florida employer can be found liable for wrongdoing committed by their employees. The employee must be doing something that is within the “scope of [their] employment,” in order to potentially hold an employer liable, but there are several legal theories under which this can be done. One of them is known as negligent hiring, and while it is very difficult to prove negligent hiring in Florida, it may be exactly what has happened in your accident case if a commercial motor vehicle (CMV) was involved.

Multiple Potential Defendants Involved

Many Florida road accidents occur due to the negligence of one or both drivers involved. State law lists three criteria that must be met in order to find a defendant driver negligent: a breach of the duty every driver has to exercise reasonable care; tangible harm done to the plaintiff; and a showing that the harm was directly related to the defendant’s actions. If the driver knew or should have known their actions were likely to harm someone else, the presumption of negligence will be high.

Unlike in accident cases involving private citizens, a crash that involves a commercial motor vehicle may have many different potential causes, and many different potential defendants. For example, if a part of the CMV was defective, a person might file suit against both the manufacturer and against the driver. A claim of negligent hiring will happen when an injured plaintiff tries to hold the driver’s employer responsible for their being on the road at all – in other words, arguing that the driver was so unfit for their job that the employer was negligent in hiring them.

Presumption In Favor Of Employers

It is not implausible to believe that some employers do not properly vet their employees, particularly if they hire independent contractors as opposed to hiring full-time workers under their banner. However, Florida law has established a presumption in favor of employers’ good faith, meaning that unless the injured plaintiff can sway the court, an employer will be held to have done their due diligence, meaning that the court will hold that no negligence occurred in hiring.

The relevant law states that if an employer “conducted a background investigation” before hiring someone, and the investigation did not turn up any reason to find the employee unsuitable, it will automatically be assumed that the employer was not negligent. What this means is that most of the time, it can come down to only an employer’s word that they did their due diligence in vetting drivers before hiring. Much of the time, an employer truly has been diligent – but there is always the rare case where they were not.

Call A Tampa Negligent Hiring Attorney

If you have been involved in an accident with a commercial vehicle, it is important to be aware that more than one defendant may be potentially liable for your injuries – but it is difficult to argue that an employer is one of them without the right assistance. A Tampa truck accident attorney from Rinaldo Law Group can help answer your questions about the legal process – contact us today to schedule a free consultation.

Source:

leg.state.fl.us/Statutes/index.cfm?App_mode=Display_Statute&URL=0700-0799/0768/Sections/0768.096.html