You know that you deserve workers’ compensation if you’re at work and you get injured in an accident. This compensation can help to pay for things like the wages that you lose while you are healing and the medical bills incurred by the injury.
But, for many workers, their commute is likely the most dangerous part of their day. There are more than 40,000 fatal accidents in the United States each year. So what if you’re involved in an accident while you’re driving to work and you get injured? You wouldn’t have been there if you didn’t have the job, so can you seek workers’ compensation?
The coming and going rule
You probably cannot seek workers’ compensation in a situation like this. This is due to the use of the coming and going rule, which says that employers generally are not responsible for injuries incurred while workers are going to work or going home after the workday has ended. In other words, your commute is not covered and they don’t have to give you workers’ comp just because you were on the way to work at the time of the crash.
The exception to this is if you were driving as part of your duties for work. Say that your boss needs you to take a package to a different location. If you’re on the clock and doing work duties while you drive to that other location, and you get injured in an accident, then you should deserve workers’ comp.
If the situation with your workers’ compensation gets complicated, make sure you take the time to look into your legal options.