Legal Question in Civil Litigation in Washington

Re: Babysitter/Car Accident

How old is your sitter? Is she a minor or not? If she's a minor you should be discussing her insurance coverage with her parents, not her.

Was she driving your kids somewhere when this happened? (Engaged in ordinary course of work duties for you) If so, arguably you are responsible for the damage, although other wiser heads may disagree.

When you pay car insurance, what you are paying for is to have an on call attorney when you need one - like now.

That's actually what car insurance is, a form of pre-paid legal strictly limited to issues arising out of your cars.

You can certainly read your policy before calling anyone. There are things you have to do when reporting a claim, such as get the other parties insurance information. Since they are your neighbors, it should be available.

Kids under 18 are generally speaking not responsible for things they do, but car driving is an exception to that policy.

As to who is responsible for repairing your neighbor's car: report the claim, let your insurance duke it out with their insurance.

Hope this helps. I could answer more clearly if I had better facts.

Elizabeth Powell