Guardian liable for car driven by minor
Insurer within rights to deny accident claims
A month ago, my 17-year-old son was driving my car without my knowledge and he met with an accident that resulted in damages. The driver of the other car and those with him were hospitalised for a week. There were major damages to both the cars and an electrical pole was also damaged. Police detained my son for a day and then released him on bail. Firstly, what is the punishment that can be handed out to my son, given the fact that he is still a school student? Secondly, the insurance firm has refused to pay any compensation on the ground that my son was driving the vehicle without a driving licence. Does the insurance company have the right to refrain from paying compensation? Finally, do the people affected in the accident have the right to demand compensation from us in a civil court? The judge may order to take any of the measures stipulated in the law on delinquent and homeless juveniles, instead of the prescribed penalties. He may put him under the father’s custody. The prescribed penalty to such an act is stated in Article 394 of the UAE Penal Code that states: “[He or she] Shall be sentenced to detention for a term not exceeding one year and/or to a fine not exceeding Dh10,000, whoever drives a car or scooter or the like without the permission or approval of its owner or its rightful utiliser.” However, Article 63 of the Penal Code states that “the one who has completed seven years, but is under 18 years of age, shall be governed by the provisions stipulated in law on delinquent and homeless juveniles”, which in turn states in Article 8 that “Should the juvenile who completed the age of 16 perpetrate a crime, the judge may order to take any of the measures stipulated in this law, as deemed appropriate by him, instead of the prescribed penalties.”
The unified motor vehicle insurance policy against loss and damage and that against party liability grants the company the right to deny compensation if the damage to the motor vehicle is caused due to an accident that happened while the vehicle was being driven by a driver without a licence to drive. In this case, the case will be filed against you since you are your son’s guardian according to Article 313 of the Civil Transactions Law, which states that no one is liable for the act of another person. However, upon request of the victim, the judge, if he deems it justified, shall order any of the following persons, as the case may be, to pay the damages to which the perpetrator has been sentenced:
A) The person who is, by law or by agreement, entrusted with the supervision of a person who, on account of his or her minority or his or her mental or physical condition, requires supervision, unless he or she proves that he or she has fulfilled his or her duty of supervision, or if the prejudice would have been sustained even if he or she had fulfilled the duty with the care necessary.
B) The one having actual authority to control and guide the perpetrator, even if he or she was not free in his or her choice, if the act was perpetrated by a subordinate in the exercise of the duty.
C) The one who settled the damages is entitled to revert to the person sentenced for payment thereof, in order to recover what
he or she had paid.