A Michigan Jeep owner sued for tragic death — even though he wasn't driving Legal action pursued after dealership mechanic was killed because a young co-worker couldn't operate a manual transmission. — via drivingdotca autonews carsafety
But because the tragic death involved a motor vehicle, Michigan law permits the family of the deceased to sue the owner of that vehicle, even though they were nowhere near the Jeep at the time of this fatal incident.
It all apparently boils down to the concept of permission. It is being argued that by giving his keys to the service department, the owner gave permission for dealership employees to drive the Jeep to do the oil change. Since the fatality occurred during this window of permission, that owner is on the hook for whatever happens during that time.Including, it appears, the negligent actions of a young mechanic who simply didn’t know how to drive a stickshift.
Meanwhile, the owner of the Jeep is staring down the barrel of a $15 million lawsuit for something that happened while he was sitting in a waiting room. That owner has brought subsequent legal action against the dealership for something called indemnity, which will force the dealership to pay the $15 million if the Hawkins family’s lawsuit is successful. The dealership, being a dealership, has appealed that decision, and is seeking to overturn the indemnity.