Workers’ compensation issues can be challenging for employees to navigate without help. Even employees who don’t work from home can spend just as much time inside the office as outside of it. Many workers have jobs with travel requirements, so they need to spend time driving from one location to another for work. What happens if an employee is injured outside the office in a car accident during work hours? While this may seem like an uncommon workers’ compensation topic, offsite and vehicle-related workplace injuries occasionally happen.
Workers’ Compensation Benefits for Workplace Travel-Related Injuries
Can an employee file for workers' compensation benefits if they are injured in a car crash while completing workplace duties? Anytime an employee completes a work-related task during working hours, they can expect the incident to be covered by workers’ compensation insurance. Employees may face challenges and resistance if their workers’ compensation doesn’t include evidence the incident is work-related. In addition to proving the travel was, in fact - work travel, employees may also need to provide the travel was sanctioned. Employees may need to have their supervisor confirm their actions were approved.
There are many jobs that require employees to travel between worksites or provide in-home services. Workers likely to have travel-related workplace incidents include:
Delivery Personnel
Food Delivery Workers
Couriers
Mail Delivery
Shuttle Drivers
Bus Drivers
Commercial Truckers
Onsite Technicians
While the job titles above may have a higher incident or likelihood of being involved in a work-related motor vehicle accident, that doesn’t mean that all travel during the workday is covered or necessary work-related travel. An attorney can help employees injured in a work-related collision by reviewing the details of their case and making recommendations.
Is Workers’ Comp Possible After a Car Accident?
While most workers’ compensation cases are typically straightforward, it’s not always easy to identify causes and effects. Some employee claims involving motor vehicle crashes can become quite complicated. Many claims are rejected due to a lack of details, poor reporting, and lack of evidence. There are other issues that could impact compensation claims; for example, if the police reports from the scene prove the accident was caused by the employee, it could impact how benefits are paid in the case. Your workers’ compensation benefits could also be lessened if there is evidence you took an unnecessary alternate route that was out of the way or unrelated to the purpose of your work trip.