Nanny car accident in our car

[Anonymous]

Our nanny got into a minor fender bender in which she was at fault while taking our kids to school. She feels very badly about it and has offered to take of the logistics of having our car fixed. DH and I are split as to whether she should contribute to the repair cost (about $2000 for both cars). As background we have an overall excellent relationship w/ our nanny and very much want her to be happy-she has been with us ofr 3 years. While this is her first real accident she did do damage our in the past (bottomed out in the driveway , which neither DH or I ever had a problem with) which cost several hundred dollars to fix, which we paid for. IF we submit to insurance our rates may rise and we will still be left with a bill of about $700. SO, should our nanny contribute (if so how much)? Should we risk filing insurance claim and premiums increasing or just suck it up and pay for it all out of pocket?

[Anonymous]

Sure, if you think she has some "disposable income" based on what you pay her and her basic cost of living, she should contribute something.
How did the accident happen?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Sure, if you think she has some "disposable income" based on what you pay her and her basic cost of living, she should contribute something.
How did the accident happen?

I don't understand this argument. If she was driving the car, and she was at fault, why wouldn't she pay for some of the damage?

[Anonymous]

PP here..btw I"m not an MB

[Anonymous]

You're the employer and that is the risk you take by having an employee drive your car for work related purposes. If it happened in the course of her duties, it's on you. No different than if a UPS driver or Pepsi deliveryman got in an accident. They might loose their job, but insurance would cover the damage.

[Anonymous]

If your nanny is at fault, she should definitely pay for the damages.

[Anonymous]

MB here. I don't think you can ask her after the fact to contribute to the costs. She was driving in the course of performing her employment duties, so by default, the responsibility is yours. That's why you presumably added her to your auto insurance.

For the future, you could put something in her contract that says if she is found to be at fault, she will be responsible for some portion of the damages, even if driving on the job. I wouldn't do it, though, as I think it would just invite disputes over whether she was really at fault, to what degree, etc.

Really, this is just part of the liability you assume by letting the nanny drive your car. If it's too much for you or you think she is careless, consider not having her drive your kids.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You're the employer and that is the risk you take by having an employee drive your car for work related purposes. If it happened in the course of her duties, it's on you. No different than if a UPS driver or Pepsi deliveryman got in an accident. They might loose their job, but insurance would cover the damage.

So by this logic, you'd be ok if OP fired her nanny for this.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You're the employer and that is the risk you take by having an employee drive your car for work related purposes. If it happened in the course of her duties, it's on you. No different than if a UPS driver or Pepsi deliveryman got in an accident. They might loose their job, but insurance would cover the damage.

So by this logic, you'd be ok if OP fired her nanny for this.

Not the PP, but yes. Driving is one of the duties of her job, just like a UPS driver. If an accident occurs in the process of performing the job duties, the employer eats the cost. It is also the employer's right to decide if the individual can be trusted to properly perform their duties in the future, or that their poor performance is costing the "company" too much and they need to be let go.

[Anonymous]

Is there a contract, OP?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Sure, if you think she has some "disposable income" based on what you pay her and her basic cost of living, she should contribute something.
How did the accident happen?

I don't understand this argument. If she was driving the car, and she was at fault, why wouldn't she pay for some of the damage? [/quot
e]
Are you the one who doesn't read very well? I did say the nanny should help pay, unless she's already living hand-to-mouth, in which case she'll go get a new job. We don't know if OP cares about that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:MB here. I don't think you can ask her after the fact to contribute to the costs. She was driving in the course of performing her employment duties, so by default, the responsibility is yours. That's why you presumably added her to your auto insurance.

For the future, you could put something in her contract that says if she is found to be at fault, she will be responsible for some portion of the damages, even if driving on the job. I wouldn't do it, though, as I think it would just invite disputes over whether she was really at fault, to what degree, etc.

Really, this is just part of the liability you assume by letting the nanny drive your car. If it's too much for you or you think she is careless, consider not having her drive your kids.

Another MB here. Agree with this 100%.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:MB here. I don't think you can ask her after the fact to contribute to the costs. She was driving in the course of performing her employment duties, so by default, the responsibility is yours. That's why you presumably added her to your auto insurance.

For the future, you could put something in her contract that says if she is found to be at fault, she will be responsible for some portion of the damages, even if driving on the job. I wouldn't do it, though, as I think it would just invite disputes over whether she was really at fault, to what degree, etc.

Really, this is just part of the liability you assume by letting the nanny drive your car. If it's too much for you or you think she is careless, consider not having her drive your kids.

Another MB here. Agree with this 100%.

+1 another MB. I might have her pay the deductible, but that's it.

[Anonymous]

OP what was your logic the first time this happened? You didn't expect her to pay for it then, why now? You are the employer and this is a risk you take when you have an employee driving your car. She should not pay, not even the deductible, but perhaps you should consider if she is right for the job, or if you can find an alternative to her driving your car.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:MB here. I don't think you can ask her after the fact to contribute to the costs. She was driving in the course of performing her employment duties, so by default, the responsibility is yours. That's why you presumably added her to your auto insurance.

For the future, you could put something in her contract that says if she is found to be at fault, she will be responsible for some portion of the damages, even if driving on the job. I wouldn't do it, though, as I think it would just invite disputes over whether she was really at fault, to what degree, etc.

Really, this is just part of the liability you assume by letting the nanny drive your car. If it's too much for you or you think she is careless, consider not having her drive your kids.

Another MB here. Agree with this 100%.

+1 another MB. I might have her pay the deductible, but that's it.

I also agree with this and am glad someone posted it more articulately than I could.