Comments on: Who’s liable in the share economy?

By: briskinlaw

briskinlaw — Tue, 08 May 2012 21:58:06 +0000

Reblogged this on Briskin, Cross & Sanford, LLC and commented: If these company's lawyers didn't warn them to watch out for this, then these guys need better lawyers! ;-) Seriously, though: "Who is liable if..." is always one of the most important questions that a company should be asking itself in every aspect of its business. Corollary to this question is "Am I insured for this, if I am liable?" The answer doesn't always have to be "yes", but you NEED to know when the answer is "no" and what it may mean to the continued viability of your business. This is basic risk-management. And it is every bit as applicable to disruptive start-ups as it is to stodgy blue-chip companies!

By: michael kanellos

michael kanellos — Tue, 08 May 2012 20:01:41 +0000

Should auto insurance/renter/homeowner policies even cover this? If yo are renting, you have a business. Thus, they need an E&O policy. Any existing coverage, arguably, can be denied on that ground. Plus, what rate do you tax it at?

By: Steve K

Steve K — Tue, 08 May 2012 19:25:41 +0000

And further, what happens when something on the car breaks and it’s pinned to faulty maintenance? Like the car owner cobbling something together that they know about but the renter may not expect. And if that results in an accident where people get hurt? Does the rental companies insurance cover that? With a Hertz, they have their own maintenance group and assume liability for the car being rentable. But random people taking care of their own cars in any random fashion may not survive the onslaught of ambulance chasers.