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Negligent Entrustment of Motor Vehicle in New York
What Is Negligent Entrustment of Motor Vehicle?
Background
“The tort of negligent entrustment is based on the degree of knowledge the supplier of a chattel has or should have concerning the entrustee's propensity to use the chattel in an improper or dangerous fashion.” (Hamilton v. Beretta U.S.A. Corp. (2001) 96 N.Y.2d 222, 237; see Graham v. Jones (2017) 147 A.D.3d 1369, 1371.)
How to Structure the Motion
“An owner of a motor vehicle, including a motorcycle, may be liable for negligent entrustment "if he [or she] was negligent in entrusting it to one who he [or she] knew, or in the exercise of ordinary care should have known, was incompetent to operate it.” (Perkins v. Cnty. of Tompkins (2018) 74 N.Y.S.3d 648, 650.)
Negligent Entrustment and Driver's License Status
Some cases have held that a person's “absence or possession of a driver's license relates only to the authority for operating a vehicle, not to its manner of operation,” such that “possession of a driver's license is not relevant to the issue of negligence.” (Perkins, supra, at 650 citing Huff v. Rodriguez (2011) 88 A.D.3d 1274, 1275; see also Firmes v. Chase Manhattan Auto. Fin. Corp. (2008) 50 A.D.3d 18, 27.)
Ownership of Vehicle and Proof of Permission
“[I]t is well settled that ‘proof of ownership of a motor vehicle creates a rebuttable presumption that the driver was using the vehicle with the owner's permission, express or implied....’” (Prog. Halcyon Ins. Co. v. Giacometti (2010) 72 A.D.3d 1503, 1506.)
“Once the plaintiff meets its initial burden of establishing ownership, a logical inference of lawful operation with the owner's consent may be drawn from the possession of the operator.” (Id.)
Response
“This presumption may be rebutted, however, by substantial evidence sufficient to show that a vehicle was not operated with the owner's consent.” (Id., citing Murdza v Zimmerman (2003) 99 N.Y.2d 375, 380.)The Court’s Decision
Here are some examples of how courts have ruled:
In Rosenfeld v. Tisi, the appeals court held that the Supreme Court properly granted summary judgment dismissing the cause of action sounding in negligent entrustment of a motor vehicle with respect to the defendant Mary Tisi... [because] it was established by documentary evidence that at the time of the accident underlying this action to recover damages for wrongful death, Mary Tisi neither owned the vehicle in question nor had control over her daughter, the defendant Gina Tisi, who was the driver of the vehicle. (Id.)
Records of the Department of Motor Vehicles established that the vehicle in question was registered to Gina Tisi approximately three weeks before the accident at a different address than that of Mary Tisi... and Gina Tisi admitted ownership of the vehicle. Furthermore, it was undisputed that at the time of the accident, Gina Tisi was an 18-year-old licensed driver with no mental or physical impairments. Accordingly, this record revealed that as a matter of law the defendant Mary Tisi is not liable under a theory of negligent entrustment.(Id.)
In Graham v. Jones, the court held that the fact that the entrusted operator of the vehicle did not possess a driver's license is a factor to consider in determining whether the defendant knew that the operator was incompetent to operate the vehicle. (Graham v. Jones (2017) 46 N.Y.S.3d 329, 331 citing Nolechek v. Gesuale,46 N.Y.2d 332, 336–337, 340 [negligent entrustment cause of action stated where the father purchased a motorcycle for his son who, inter alia, did not possess a license].)
In Cone v. Williams, in support of the counterclaim for negligent entrustment, the defendants were allowed to elicit testimony from the father of the infant plaintiff that his son was not a licensed operator of the all-terrain vehicle. (Cone v. Williams (1992) 182 A.D.2d 1102, 1102.)
In Calhoun v. Allen, a car rental business failed to meet its burden because it failed to establish that the driver to whom it rented the vehicle had a valid driver's license. (Calhoun v. Allen (2011) 38 Misc.3d 171, 178–179.)
Documents for Negligent Entrustment of Motor Vehicle in New York
21 pages
FILED: KINGS COUNTY CLERK 07/28/2026 03:38 PM INDEX NO. 503924/2025 NYSCEF DOC. NO. 123 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 07/28/2026 EXHIBIT E FILED: KINGS COUNTY CLERK 07/28/2026 03:38 PM INDEX NO. 503924/2025 NYSCEF DOC. NO. 123 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 07/28/2026 100 Q…
County
Kings County, NY
Filed Date
Jul 28, 2026
Court Category
Torts - Motor Vehicle
21 pages
FILED: KINGS COUNTY CLERK 07/28/2026 04:05 PM INDEX NO. 503924/2025 NYSCEF DOC. NO. 139 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 07/28/2026 EXHIBIT E FILED: KINGS COUNTY CLERK 07/28/2026 04:05 PM INDEX NO. 503924/2025 NYSCEF DOC. NO. 139 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 07/28/2026 100 Q…
County
Kings County, NY
Filed Date
Jul 28, 2026
Court Category
Torts - Motor Vehicle
29 pages
FILED: KINGS COUNTY CLERK 05/20/2026 06:04 PM INDEX NO. 503924/2025 NYSCEF DOC. NO. 101 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 05/20/2026 SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK COUNTY OF KINGS ------------------------------------------------------------------------x RESPONSE TO PLAINTIFF’S MOHAMMAD ISLAM, …
County
Kings County, NY
Filed Date
May 20, 2026
Court Category
Torts - Motor Vehicle
177 pages
FILED: BRONX COUNTY CLERK 04/06/2026 09:11 AM INDEX NO. 33149/2018E NYSCEF DOC. NO. 188 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 04/06/2026 EXHIBIT W FILED: BRONX COUNTY CLERK 04/06/2026 09:11 AM INDEX NO. 33149/2018E NYSCEF DOC. NO. 188 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 04/06/2026 A BIT T ON ASSOCIATION® ORD S U E RESO…
Case Name
CRUZ, WILSON I. v. MUAADH, T. AWN
Case #
(Subscribe to View)
Case Filed
Nov 16, 2018
Case Status
Active
County
Bronx County, NY
Filed Date
Apr 06, 2026
Court Category
Torts - Motor Vehicle
21 pages
FILED: KINGS COUNTY CLERK 02/03/2026 03:48 PM INDEX NO. 503924/2025 NYSCEF DOC. NO. 70 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 02/03/2026 EXHIBIT E FILED: KINGS COUNTY CLERK 02/03/2026 03:48 PM INDEX NO. 503924/2025 NYSCEF DOC. NO. 70 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 02/03/2026 100 Qu…
County
Kings County, NY
Filed Date
Feb 03, 2026
Court Category
Torts - Motor Vehicle
16 pages
FILED: KINGS COUNTY CLERK 10/07/2025 04:30 PM INDEX NO. 524000/2025 NYSCEF DOC. NO. 21 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 10/07/2025 Exhibit I FILED: KINGS COUNTY CLERK 10/07/2025 04:30 PM INDEX NO. 524000/2025 NYSCEF DOC. NO. 21 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 10/07/2025 SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK …
County
Kings County, NY
Filed Date
Oct 07, 2025
Court Category
Tort-Motor Vehicle
22 pages
FILED: KINGS COUNTY CLERK 09/15/2025 05:15 PM INDEX NO. 503924/2025 NYSCEF DOC. NO. 35 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 09/15/2025 EXHIBIT C FILED: KINGS COUNTY CLERK 09/15/2025 05:15 PM INDEX NO. 503924/2025 NYSCEF DOC. NO. 35 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 09/15/2025 SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK COUNTY OF KINGS…
County
Kings County, NY
Filed Date
Sep 15, 2025
Court Category
Torts - Motor Vehicle
18 pages
FILED: SUFFOLK COUNTY CLERK 09/09/2025 11:48 PM INDEX NO. 619103/2021 NYSCEF DOC. NO. 155 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 09/09/2025 SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK COUNTY OF SUFFOLK ----------------------------------------------------------------------X Index No.: 619103/2021 ALEXANDRA D'ORIO, …
County
Suffolk County, NY
Filed Date
Sep 09, 2025
Court Category
Tort-Motor Vehicle
31 pages
FILED: KINGS COUNTY CLERK 08/24/2025 05:41 PM INDEX NO. 518749/2022 NYSCEF DOC. NO. 111 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 08/24/2025 SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK COUNTY OF KINGS ----------------------------------------- x JORDAN LE, : Index No.: 518749/2022 : Plai…
Case Name
Le, Jordan v. Dembele, Kaou et al
Case #
(Subscribe to View)
Case Filed
Jun 30, 2022
Case Status
Active-Restored
County
Kings County, NY
Filed Date
Aug 24, 2025
Court Category
Tort-Motor Vehicle
18 pages
D: NEW YORK INDEX NO. 158573/2019 NYSCEF DOC. NO. 134 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 08/19/2025 EXHIBIT A INDEX NO. 158573/2019 NYSCEF DOC. NO. 134 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 08/19/2025 Yelena Umov From: Stephen Maloney Sent: Tuesday, August 19, 2025 9:50 AM To: Yelena Umov Subject: …
Case Name
KHAIMOV, LIRON v. CITY OF NEW YORK
Case #
(Subscribe to View)
Case Filed
Sep 03, 2019
Case Status
Active
County
New York County, NY
Filed Date
Aug 19, 2025
Court Category
Tort-Motor Vehicle-City
284 pages
" INDEX 0 eal NYSCEF DOC. NO. 64 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 08/13/2025 ! SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK , COUNTY OF BRONX asain suanatnanaes ene nae oR Umea EDWIN A. ACOSTA-RODRIGUEZ, Index No.: 21813/2020E Plaintiff, …
County
Bronx County, NY
Filed Date
Aug 13, 2025
Court Category
Tort-Motor Vehicle
25 pages
FILED: NASSAU COUNTY CLERK 07/25/2025 05:06 PM INDEX NO. 608527/2023 NYSCEF DOC. NO. 75 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 07/25/2025 SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK COUNTY OF NASSAU ----------------------------------------------------------------------X KENISHA JOHNSON, Index No. 60852…
County
Nassau County, NY
Filed Date
Jul 25, 2025
Court Category
Tort-Motor Vehicle
8 pages
FILED: NASSAU COUNTY CLERK 07/24/2025 03:43 PM INDEX NO. 602425/2021 NYSCEF DOC. NO. 135 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 07/24/2025 SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK COUNTY OF NASSAU --------------------------------------------------------------------X DAWN LAVIN, Plaintiff, …
Case Name
LAVIN, DAWN v. KHMALADZE, LEVAN et al
Case #
(Subscribe to View)
Case Filed
Mar 01, 2021
Case Status
Active
County
Nassau County, NY
Filed Date
Jul 24, 2025
Court Category
Tort-Motor Vehicle
9 pages
FILED: NASSAU COUNTY CLERK 07/24/2025 12:48 PM INDEX NO. 602425/2021 NYSCEF DOC. NO. 115 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 07/24/2025 SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK COUNTY OF NASSAU --------------------------------------------------------------------X DAWN LAVIN, Plaintiff, …
Case Name
LAVIN, DAWN v. KHMALADZE, LEVAN et al
Case #
(Subscribe to View)
Case Filed
Mar 01, 2021
Case Status
Active
County
Nassau County, NY
Filed Date
Jul 24, 2025
Court Category
Tort-Motor Vehicle
27 pages
FILED: QUEENS COUNTY CLERK 06/25/2025 06/12/2025 05:05 09:20 PM INDEX NO. 713531/2018 NYSCEF DOC. NO. 131 82 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 06/25/2025 06/12/2025 SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF NEW YOR…
County
Queens County, NY
Filed Date
Jun 25, 2025
Court Category
Tort-Motor Vehicle
2 pages
FILED: WESTCHESTER COUNTY CLERK 06/02/2025 11:49 PM INDEX NO. 50221/2023 NYSCEF DOC. NO. 153 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 06/02/2025 : …
County
Westchester County, NY
Filed Date
Jun 02, 2025
Court Category
Torts - Motor Vehicle
27 pages
FILED: QUEENS COUNTY CLERK 05/06/2025 01:55 PM INDEX NO. 700242/2024 73 NYSCEF DOC. NO. RECEIVED NYSCEF: 05/06/2025 …
Case Name
Beacco, Laura v. Access-A-Ride et al
Case #
(Subscribe to View)
Case Filed
Jan 04, 2024
Case Status
Active
County
Queens County, NY
Filed Date
May 06, 2025
Court Category
Tort-Motor Vehicle
140 pages
FILED: NASSAU COUNTY CLERK 04/21/2025 04:53 PM INDEX NO. 619249/2023 NYSCEF DOC. NO. 131 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 04/21/2025 EXHIBIT 1 FILED: NASSAU COUNTY CLERK 11/28/2023 04/21/2025 02:49 04:53 PM INDEX NO. 619249/2023 NYSCEF DOC. NO. 131 …
County
Nassau County, NY
Filed Date
Apr 21, 2025
Court Category
Torts - Motor Vehicle
107 pages
FILED: NASSAU COUNTY CLERK 04/16/2025 03:58 PM INDEX NO. 604029/2025 NYSCEF DOC. NO. 21 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 04/16/2025 Exhibit K FILED: NASSAU COUNTY CLERK 04/16/2025 03:58 PM INDEX NO. 604029/2025 NYSCEF DOC. NO. 21 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 04/16/2025 SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK …
County
Nassau County, NY
Filed Date
Apr 16, 2025
Court Category
Tort-Motor Vehicle
69 pages
D: NEW YORK INDEX NO. 152507/2025 NYSCEF DOC. NO. 20 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 04/14/2025 EXHIBIT "H" [N1667901.1 } D: NEW YORK INDEX NO. 152507/2025 NYSCEF DOC. NO. 20 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 04/14/2025 SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK COUNTY OF NEW YORK voecece ence nenene…
Case Name
OU, GONG QIANG v. ROSA, MARIE et al
Case #
(Subscribe to View)
Case Filed
Feb 25, 2025
Case Status
Active
County
New York County, NY
Filed Date
Apr 14, 2025
Court Category
Tort-Motor Vehicle
26 pages
FILED: QUEENS COUNTY CLERK 02/03/2025 10:22 AM INDEX NO. 701010/2021 NYSCEF DOC. NO. 211 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 02/03/2025 SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK COUNTY OF QUEENS --------------------------------------------------------------------X FELIX NUNEZ, …
Case Name
NUNEZ, FELIX v. CITY OF NEW YORK et al
Case #
(Subscribe to View)
Case Filed
Oct 10, 2019
Case Status
Disposed
County
Queens County, NY
Filed Date
Feb 03, 2025
Court Category
Tort-Motor Vehicle-City
25 pages
FILED: QUEENS COUNTY CLERK 01/16/2025 03:42 PM INDEX NO. 701010/2021 NYSCEF DOC. NO. 210 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 01/17/2025 SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK COUNTY OF QUEENS ---------------------------------------------------------------------- x Index No. 701010/2021 FELIX NUNEZ, …
Case Name
NUNEZ, FELIX v. CITY OF NEW YORK et al
Case #
(Subscribe to View)
Case Filed
Oct 10, 2019
Case Status
Disposed
County
Queens County, NY
Filed Date
Jan 16, 2025
Court Category
Tort-Motor Vehicle-City
17 pages
FILED: QUEENS COUNTY CLERK 01/16/2025 12:43 PM INDEX NO. 701010/2021 NYSCEF DOC. NO. 209 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 01/16/2025 SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK COUNTY OF QUEENS ------------------------------------------------------------------X FELIX NUNEZ, NOTICE OF EN…
Case Name
NUNEZ, FELIX v. CITY OF NEW YORK et al
Case #
(Subscribe to View)
Case Filed
Oct 10, 2019
Case Status
Disposed
County
Queens County, NY
Filed Date
Jan 16, 2025
Court Category
Tort-Motor Vehicle-City
13 pages
FILED: QUEENS COUNTY CLERK 01/15/2025 03:04 PM INDEX NO. 701010/2021 NYSCEF DOC. NO. 207 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 01/15/2025 Short Form Order NEW YORK SUPREME COURT-QUEENS COUNTY Present: HONORABLE CHEREÉ A. BUGGS IAS PART 30 …
Case Name
NUNEZ, FELIX v. CITY OF NEW YORK et al
Case #
(Subscribe to View)
Case Filed
Oct 10, 2019
Case Status
Disposed
County
Queens County, NY
Filed Date
Jan 15, 2025
Court Category
Tort-Motor Vehicle-City
13 pages
FILED: QUEENS COUNTY CLERK 01/15/2025 03:04 PM INDEX NO. 701010/2021 NYSCEF DOC. NO. 208 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 01/15/2025 Short Form Order NEW YORK SUPREME COURT-QUEENS COUNTY Present: HONORABLE CHEREÉ A. BUGGS IAS PART 30 …
Case Name
NUNEZ, FELIX v. CITY OF NEW YORK et al
Case #
(Subscribe to View)
Case Filed
Oct 10, 2019
Case Status
Disposed
County
Queens County, NY
Filed Date
Jan 15, 2025
Court Category
Tort-Motor Vehicle-City
