Reid v. Woods

• Decision Date: 22 June 1936
• Docket Number: 4-4320
• Parties: REID v. WOODS
• Court: Arkansas Supreme Court

95 S.W.2d 637

192 Ark. 884

REID v. WOODS

4-4320

Supreme Court of Arkansas

June 22, 1936

Appeal from Pulaski Circuit Court, Second Division; Richard M. Mann Judge; reversed.

Case dismissed.

Fred M. Pickens, for appellant.

Buzbee Harrison, Buzbee & Wright, for appellee.

OPINION

SMITH, J.

Appellee Woods recovered a judgment against W. A. Eldred and Lee Reid from which only Reid has appealed, to compensate an injury which appellee sustained, resulting from a collision of an automobile in which he was riding with another car owned by Reid, but being driven by Eldred. For the reversal of this judgment only one error is assigned, and argued; and that is that the testimony does not show that Eldred, at the time of the collision, was the agent of Reid, or that Eldred was acting within the scope of his agency.

The testimony stated in the light most favorable to plaintiff, appellee, is to the following effect. Reid is the sheriff of Jackson county, and his duties as such required him to make a trip to Hattiesburg, Mississippi, to pick up a prisoner at that place. Reid took Eldred, with him on long trips to help drive, as Eldred was a good driver. It is not usual for one man to go anywhere alone after a prisoner; and Eldred was carried along to drive.

Reid visited Woods in the hospital after the collision, and stated to him that Eldred was a deputy; and that he and Eldred were on their way to Mississippi to get a prisoner, and that he carried Eldred with him to look after the car.

Reid, accompanied by Eldred, drove the car from Newport to Little Rock, a distance of 90 miles, where they arrived about 9 a. m. Reid was in Little Rock to testify before the Federal Grand Jury, and to attend to some other business. Eldred borrowed the car to go out to his sisters for dinner. It was agreed that Reid and Eldred would meet again at 8 a. m., the following day and resume their journey, a distance of 400 miles from Little Rock. With this understanding Eldred drove away in the car at 5:30 p. m., to his sister's home. This was purely a social visit with which Reid had no concern. After borrowing the car, for the purpose of making this visit, Eldred drove it to the home of his sister who told him that their brother, a city fireman, had a poisoned hand. They went for this brother and brought him to their sister's home. After dinner Eldred was driving his brother back to the fire station, where he was employed, and while on the way there the collision occurred in which appellee was injured.

The agency of Eldred as Reid's chauffeur ceased at 5:30 p. m., and had not been resumed when the collision occurred. The effect of the undisputed testimony is to establish the fact that Reid had loaned his car to Eldred to use for a purpose having no relation to his agency, to make a social visit, with which Reid had no concern.

In 5 Blashfield's Cyc. of Automobile Law, a section numbered 3025 entitled "Loan of Automobile to Servant," extending from page 165 to page 170, states the law to be that "Under the general rule a loan of a machine does not carry with it responsibility for the negligence of the borrower, where a servant, while not engaged in the master's business, and during a time...