Legal Question in Traffic Law in Georgia

Re: Parental liabilites when a child is driving uninsured with a suspended licen

If stopped, he can be cited, and even arrested, for no proof of insurance. The fine will be not less than $500. Also, he will be personally liable, without coverage, for any loss, injury or death he causes.

Since he is still a minor, and assuming he has not been declared emancipated by a court, you still have lawful parental authority. So, you could lawfully boot his car and forbid him to drive it without insurance. In fact, if you don't do something to stop him and he has an accident, you could be sued for negligent parental supervision by any party he injures.

Since he owns the car, I would not recommend moving it or hiding it. He could accuse you of stealing it. But booting it is a great idea.

Re: Parental liabilites when a child is driving uninsured with a suspended licen

Disregard the part of my answer that mentioned emancipated minor and the fine for no proof of insurance. I mistakenly thought yours' was a California question. There is no such thing as an emancipated minor in Georgia. Except for that and the $500 fine amount, everything said applies in Georgia. I will send one more follow-up with the fine amount in Georgia.

Re: Parental liabilites when a child is driving uninsured with a suspended licen

In Georgia, the penalty for no proof of insurance is $200 to $1,000 and up to one year in jail. Further, they WILL impound the vehicle on the scene, so he will almost certainly be arrested, unless the police feel particularly gracious and choose to cite him and let him walk.

Re: Parental liabilites when a child is driving uninsured with a suspended licen

Not to mention that driving on a suspended license is another misdemeanor for which he can be arrested/fined/jailed. In fact, they will almost certainly arrest him for that one. And, of course, any other violation for which they stopped him in the first place. Basically, he will find himself in pretty big trouble. And, keep in mind that under Georgia's new proof of insurance system, the police can tell whether a vehicle is insured just by running the tag number. So, it is possible he could be stopped for just that if they just for curiosity ran a "make" on the license number while following him.

Re: Parental liabilites when a child is driving uninsured with a suspended licen

I'm sorry to inundate you with so many responses. But I had an important afterthought. If he turns 18 before the 6-month suspension runs, you will have to unboot the car on his 18th birthday or you could be committing a criminal trespass to property. But, at that point, you will have no potential liability for his actions driving.

If I have confused you in any way, or you have more questions, feel free to e-mail me at [email protected].