Laws regarding students?

Laws Regarding the Transportation of Students in Non-Commercial School Vehicles

• Answer:

  Transporting students, be it in a school vehicle or non-commercial school vehicle, involves a tremendous amount of liability. The exact laws vary from state to state, but certain laws and good practice are common throughout legal jurisdictions. Non-commercial vehicles may include a parent driving children to a sporting event after school. Permission The school or driver of the non-commercial vehicle must receive permission in writing from the parent of the child before the child is legally allowed to ride. This is often overlooked and not enforced when parents drive groups of children home from school or to sporting matches. However, if an incident occurs on the road, the parents of the child involved can take legal action against the driver if permission was not granted in writing. Qualifications The driver of the vehicle must be qualified and licensed to drive that vehicle. For example, a non-commercial school vehicle may be a rented van that the teacher will drive. The teacher may not have a license to drive that type of van. In that case, the teacher is in violation of not only a traffic law but also can get into trouble for child endangerment by driving a vehicle he is not legally qualified to drive. Geographic The laws regarding the transportation of children in non-commercial vehicles vary from state to state and possibly even town to town. Most states require that all passengers in a vehicle must wear seat belts; other states legally allow students to be passengers in the back bed of a pickup. Check with local authorities regarding the law. Age The age of the students makes a big difference. Students who are under the age of 18 must have parental permission before they are allowed to be transported. Students above the age of 18 are legal adults and do not need permission from an adult to be transported.