While millions of Minnesotans drive to their job every day, hundreds of thousands of workers across the state drive as part of their job. Whether you’re a truck driver transporting goods or you’re driving a supply truck off the job site to Home Depot, if you’re driving a vehicle as part of your work role, you can seek compensation for any injuries you may suffer while driving. Below, we explain which types of automobile injuries are compensable in Minnesota.
Can I Get Workers’ Compensation For My Car Accident?
Just because you drive to and from work doesn’t mean that you can collect compensation for any injuries you may suffer in an accident while you’re heading to or leaving work. An employer can’t be held liable for an accident that was caused by an employee during their commute if they were not considered in the line of duty at the time of the crash.
However, if you were doing something work-related, you can seek compensation for your auto accident injuries even if driving isn’t your main duty at work. This is known as “respondeat superior,” and it means that employers are legally responsible for the actions of their employees “while acting within the scope of their employment.” For example, all of these situations would be compensable actions under Minnesota workers’ compensation law:
- Driving to or from a delivery.
- Running a work-related errand.
- Driving another employee for work-related reasons.
- Traveling to an event or convention that is considered mandatory or for which the employee is compensated by the employer.
- Driving to and from job sites.
- Driving a company vehicle while fulfilling job duties.
As you can see by the above descriptions, the key here is that the automobile accident and injuries occurred while the employee is performing a work-related task. As we mentioned above, simply driving to and from work is not considered a work related task; Either is driving to the gas station on a break or driving to McDonald’s during your lunch hour. However, if your boss gives you the company credit card and tells you to go get coffee for everyone, this would be considered a work-related task open to compensation.
Types Of Compensation
If you are injured in an on-the-job automobile accident, you can seek workers’ compensation for your injuries. You may also be able to seek damages to cover:
- Medical bills
- Out-of-pocket expenses
- Pain and suffering
Finally, it’s also worth noting that your auto injury claim can be denied if it is found that you were under the influence of drugs or alcohol at the time of the accident, or if you intentionally caused the auto accident in order to collect compensation.
If you’ve been injured during an on-the-job car accident, and you are wondering about your options for pursuing compensation, reach out to Hey Workers today. We’ve helped hundreds of clients in the same position secure the compensation they deserve, and we can help you as well. Call our office today.
