Parents may think driver’s licenses for their teens means greater freedom for hem as parents. While this is true in some ways, it’s critical to know that Indiana puts responsibility on parents’ shoulders when their child causes an accident. Indiana’s parental responsibility laws can hold parents liable for damage or injury resulting from their teen’s reckless or negligent driving.
This makes it essential to understand your potential legal exposure and the realities of teen driving. Consulting an experienced Indianapolis car accident lawyer can help parents protect their rights and navigate these situations effectively.
Teen Driving Statistics
Teen drivers face some of the highest dangers on the road, and current numbers reveal just how great the risk can be:
- In 2010, a third of deaths among youth aged 13 to 19 resulted from motor vehicle accidents.
- Sixteen-year-olds are more likely to crash than drivers in any other age bracket.
- Over half of teens – 56% – admit to talking on a cell phone while driving.
- Using a cell behind the wheel increases the risk of a car accident by double.
- Teenagers whose parents are involved and set clear expectations are shown to wear their seat belts twice as often as those whose parents do not.
Given these sobering statistics, parents and guardians must understand how their legal responsibilities and daily choices shape teens’ behavior and safety on Indiana roads.
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Indiana Law on Parental Liability
Indiana law outlines the circumstances where a parent can be held financially responsible for a car accident caused by their teenager. While parents aren’t automatically on the hook just because their child makes a mistake, there are important rules that families should know about.
Parental Signature on a License Application
Under Indiana Code § 9-24-9-4, when a parent or legal guardian signs the paperwork allowing their underage child to get a driver’s license, they’re taking financial liability. This means they can be held responsible for any damages caused if their teen is in a crash if the minor is found liable.
IC 9-24-9-4
Minor applicants; liability of signers; expiration of licenses and permits
Sec. 4. (a) An individual who signs an application for a permit or driver’s license under this chapter agrees to be responsible jointly and severally with the minor applicant for any injury or damage that the minor applicant causes by reason of the operation of a motor vehicle if the minor applicant is liable in damages.
Parent Can Ask For Driving Privileges To Be Terminated
At any point before the teen turns 18, the person who signed the application can submit a verified, written request to the Indiana Bureau of Motor Vehicles (BMV) asking for the minor’s permit or license to be terminated, effectively expiring their driving privileges. Once the license is officially expired, the parent or legal guardian is no longer liable for any new accidents or damages caused by the minor behind the wheel.
(b) An individual who has signed the application of a minor applicant for a permit or driver’s license may subsequently file with the bureau a verified written request that the permit or driver’s license be expired. The bureau shall expire the permit or driver’s license, and the individual who signed the application of the minor applicant shall be relieved from the liability that is imposed under this chapter by reason of having signed the application and that is subsequently incurred by the minor applicant in operating a motor vehicle.
Parental Liability Ends When Child Turns 18
Additionally, parental liability ends on its own when the driver turns 18. After reaching adulthood, all responsibility for traffic incidents or accidents falls solely on the young adult driver, not the person who originally signed their license paperwork.
(c) When a minor applicant becomes eighteen (18) years of age, the individual who signed the minor’s application is relieved from the liability imposed under this chapter and subsequently incurred by the applicant operating a motor vehicle.
Whether your child has been involved in an accident and you’re worried about your legal responsibilities, or you need guidance on holding a parent accountable for damage caused by a teen driver, an Indianapolis personal injury lawyer from Vaughan & Vaughan is here to assist. Contact us today to schedule a free consultation.
