Many jobs require that people drive. Bus drivers and those operating semi-trucks spend the majority of each shift they work on the road. They may recognize that crashes are one of the most pressing safety concerns related to their employment.
Many other professionals have to spend time at the wheel occasionally to fulfill their job responsibilities. Medical professionals sometimes offer in-home services to patients in need of long-term care, like physical therapy.
Blue-collar workers may travel while on the clock to perform house calls for potential customers. Someone managing a restaurant that might need to take a deposit to the bank or get change for the servers to use when customers pay with cash. Crashes are one of the most common job injury risk factors. How do those who drive for a living cover their losses if a crash occurs while they’re working?
Fault influences compensation options
Fault plays a major role in determining what types of compensation are available when someone gets hurt. If the other party was at fault for the crash, then the employee hurt while driving for work might very well be able to file an insurance claim against that other driver to pay to repair their vehicle and cover other expenses. Occasionally, workers dealing with injuries caused by a crash are technically the party at fault for the crash. What options do they have in that situation?
Workers’ compensation doesn’t usually factor in fault
The good news for someone unable to file a standard car insurance claim is that workers’ compensation coverage might be available. While the person at fault for a collision usually cannot rely on the other driver’s insurance to cover their expenses, they could still be eligible for workers’ compensation benefits.
With a few exceptions for unusual scenarios, workers’ compensation does not usually look at fault when determining eligibility. Someone’s work status is the main consideration. So long as they were on the clock when the crash occurred, workers’ compensation benefits may be available. Those benefits can cover all of someone’s medical treatment costs and can also help replace some of their lost income.
The exceptions previously mentioned include cases where an employer can prove a worker was under the influence of drugs or alcohol and that their impairment was the underlying cause of their injury. Scenarios where there is evidence that someone caused a collision on purpose may also lead to a denied workers’ compensation claim.
The vast majority of employees hurt in a car crash while working are eligible for workers’ compensation benefits if they follow the right procedures. They may want to pursue both workers’ compensation and a claim against the other party who actually caused the wreck. Understanding the different options available to those involved in work-related crashes can help people minimize their personal financial losses after a wreck.
