NAFA's South Central Chapter Goes On Trial "To Buy Or Not To Buy"
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NAFA's South Central Chapter gathered on September 24, at the Bob Bolen Public Safety Complex in Fort Worth, TX to be put on trial.
John Cruickshank, Attorney at Alaniz and Schraeder, provided a presentation on legal issues relative to fleets. "We had a 'fleet manager on trial' skit," said South Central Chapter Chair Bill Sterner, CAFM®, CEM. The mock court case hinged on a provocative question: can your organization be held liable for not having safety equipment and technology in your vehicles, and those vehicles are subsequently involved in a crash?
The answer, although complicated, tends to be "yes." It depends on whether the organization was sufficiently aware of such technology, what it might prevent, and whether the organization made an active decision not to have such equipment anyway. On the one hand, an organization might be accused of being ignorant to what is available in tech, but they might not be actively negligent. On the other hand, by knowing about rearview cameras and not adding that tect to the cars, they could be charged with passively allowing the crash or injury to happen. They had the information and a choice, and made a poor one.
This is a scenario Cruickshank has presented to a handful of NAFA Chapters, and it never fails to provoke thought and discussion. "(The mock trial) had the audience swaying one way with their verdict but had most coming back the other by the time the skit was finished," Sterner said. "John always seems to keep the folks interested in what he has to say, and how he shares the differing views of both sides of the issue."
It is a question worth considering, especially when technology is moving at such a breakneck pace. How can a fleet always stay current with the latest and greatest? Is that even possible or cost-effective? And what if the technology isn't as effective as promised? Cruickshank has stated in the past that, in many cases, this matters little to trial lawyers whose main goal is to pressure organizations into settlements well before "trial" is invoked. There are no clear answers, but the questions require consideration. It's that level of thoughtfulness that makes NAFA Chapter meetings such a valuable resource for fleet professionals and NAFA members.
Special thanks to Chapter Chair Bill Sterner, CAFM®, CEM, for material in this article. Back to NAFA Connection
