Accident While Driving for Work — Who is Responsible?
If you are from OKC, liability can be complex if you or another employee get injured in a company vehicle accident, for which an accident lawyer is recommended. In general, the injured person gets justice and compensation for his or her physical and financial losses but if the accident was caused due to the injured employee, then in that case, the employer may be held liable.
Obviously, the matter is not nearly so simple. As a rule of thumb, however, you can take for granted that if the accident happened in the line of duty (in court, that would be called the “course and scope” of the employee’s duties for the employer) then the employer would be held liable. Of course, the employee would have to be driving a company vehicle only.
This, again, leaves room for interpretation. What if the employee was driving a company car for company work, but took a detour to buy lunch from a drive-in and crashed in the window? Would that be the fault of the employer? Certainly, it shouldn’t be, and it wouldn’t, too.
When is an Employee Driving for Work?
An employer is legally responsible to provide a “duty of care” to their employees when they are driving for work. So, what does that mean — ‘driving for work’?
Driving for work involves two scenarios:
When driving is part of the job, and they are paid for it. For example, in logistics companies delivering goods would be driving for work.
When the employee is traveling on purpose for a job outside of the usual workplace. For example, if you are sending an executive to meet up with a client, that is a ground for providing a duty of care.
However, coming to work and leaving work are not part of the actual job, so you as an employer are not liable for any accidents to employees that can happen while commuting to/from the work.
When Can the Employee Be Liable for Accident?
The Road Safety Laws make it very clear that drivers are directly responsible for their driving. Therefore, if the investigation makes it sure that the driver was at fault, then your car accident attorney in OKC can get you off the hook. But the driver will have to have one of the following issues:
They were not properly insured
They did not have a valid license
The vehicle was not safe for driving. For example, if the cargo wasn’t secured properly.
They did not follow your company’s driving policy and guide.
Let’s face it, the roads are not safe. Get our experienced lawyer at Chiaf Law Offices in OKC and have peace of mind in case something happens. We don’t want it to happen — but you should be ready when it does happen.
**This content is not legal advice and does not presume, establish or imply any relationship between client and attorney.