Churches, Christian schools, and other Christian ministries constantly transport people. Some provide bus transportation to church. Some provide van transportation to activities. Unless we are careful, we can easily let an important recordkeeping requirement slip.
Suppose an accident occurs involving a ministry vehicle. In many, or most, cases, a lawsuit will be filed. If this happens and it can be shown that a ministry did not take careful steps to ensure they were using safe, qualified drivers, a judge or jury could impose severe fines on the ministry.
To begin, every ministry should obtain a copy of the commercial driver’s license (CDL) of every driver who operates a vehicle that requires a CDL. They should also obtain a copy of the driver’s license for every driver that operates a ministry vehicle (even if that vehicle does not require a CDL), and they should obtain a copy of the driver’s license for every driver who uses his own vehicle in service of the ministry. In addition, ministries should obtain a seven-year driving record for each person who drives on behalf of the ministry.
When a ministry can demonstrate that all its drivers have up-to-date licenses and good driving records, that ministry is much less likely to be fined for negligence in the event of an accident. If you have questions specific to your situation, please call our attorneys for advice.