According to the principle of vicarious liability, an employee who gets into an accident in a corporate car while using it for personal rather than business-related purposes may not be entitled to insurance and is therefore responsible. For example, a person might not have insurance if an accident happened while driving a company automobile for personal travel.
However, the specific boundaries between what is acceptable and what is not are hazy. A typical vicarious liability policy’s language is as follows:
“The activities of the staff at the scene of any automobile accidents should be within the scope of employment.”
When using a business vehicle for personal errands, it is doubtful that an accident will be reimbursed. In addition, the driver is unlikely to succeed with corporate insurance if the employer determines that the activities are unrelated to the job.