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Errands off the clock and workers’ compensation

On Behalf of | May 30, 2018 | workers' compensation

You regularly run errands for your Georgia employer. Sometimes these occur before work, or on your way home, and sometimes you stop to pick something up on your lunch break. If you were hurt at the office, you would expect workers’ compensation, but what about when you are in your car? At Cromartie Law, we understand the confusion that often occurs over offsite accidents.

Because you were in your car, and you were not on the clock, you may rightly wonder whether you qualify for workers’ compensation. According to FindLaw, the key is whether your injuries are work-related.

This does not necessarily hinge on whether errands are a normal part of your job duties. In fact, the errand could be a one-time event. For example, perhaps due to inclement weather, the sidewalks in front of the building need to be salted. Your boss calls and asks you to stop at the store and pick up the salt on your way to work. As you leave the store parking lot to go to work, your car hits a patch of ice and slides into another vehicle. Because the situation occurred while you were performing a task for your employer, the company’s workers’ compensation insurance will probably cover your medical costs.

The situation may not result in workers’ compensation benefits if you leave the store, but then you go to the gas station to fill up afterward and the accident happens there. That errand was personal and not work-related, so your injuries are not likely to be covered.

More information about work-related injury accidents is available on our webpage.

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