When you're on the road for a living, even the best of drivers are almost certainly going to be involved in a crash throughout their career. Insurance industry experts estimate drivers will file a claim for a collision about once every 17.9 years.
That number is much higher for professional drivers. More than 4,000 large trucks and busses were involved in fatal crashes in 2017 - up nearly 50 percent since 2009.
While most of us know what to do when someone rear-ends us at a stoplight - that same accident can get a little more legally messy when you are working a job with a company car or working a delivery job in their own car and your livelihood is on the line.
But before the accident, and the headaches that go with it, memorize these essential legal steps to take right after an accident when you're on the job.
Working A Job With A Company Car: Be On The Clock
The easiest step to ensuring you won't personally be held responsible for an accident is proving you were working directly for your company at the time of the crash.
It comes down to a legal concept called respondent superior which dictates that employers are legally responsible for their employee's actions - even if a crash was your fault.
There's a simple checklist for a work car crash that will in almost all circumstances make sure you are in the clear:
You were driving within the scope of your work duties
You were "on the clock"
Your employer was benefiting from your driving at the time of the accident
So long as you can mark these three checks, your employer - and not you - are one the hook for any liability.
Contact Your Employer
Along with speaking with the police and exchanging information with the other driver you should call your employer right away.
This will make sure you can begin the process of filing a worker's compensation claim to help cover any possible injuries and set you up for paid time off for doctor's visits or a potential hospital stay.
Employer insurance should also cover a series of other costs to you including:
Legal fees for a third-party lawsuit
Pain and suffering
Lost wages due to injury
Personal property damage
It's paramount to get the ball rolling on these benefits fast by calling your boss as soon as possible after the crash.
Get Legal Help
In a perfect world, employers would do anything to help their employees when they have an accident at work.
And even if your employer has the best of intentions, local, state and federal laws can create a morass of legalese that can be indecipherable to the uninitiated.
That's when it comes time to hire an expert work accident lawyer to help you sort through the paperwork to make sure you are getting every benefit you are entitled to. Your company is sure to have its own legal team working on the case - you owe it to yourself to make sure you are being fought for too.
Be Prepared Before It's Too Late
After an accident is the worst time to try and make sure you are covered.
Instead, when you're hired for a job with a company car speak with your manager that first day about what responsibilities you will need to do and what their expectations are for you.
Hopefully, you will never need this advice - but it's best to prepare now for the worst so you will be ready when the inevitable happens.
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