What benefits are due if you are injured on the way to work?

Last modified: January 2021

We have to deal with such an interesting case as an industrial injury on the way to work, and determine the measures that will be applied in this situation. It is impossible to predict in advance all the dangers in life. Employees are injured on the job or outside of work. With regard to cases that occur at work, the law is clear in its interpretation of injury as an industrial injury. But more often, accidents leading to disability occur outside of work and working hours.

If the injury occurred on the way to work, is it related to work?

The citizen went to work and was injured on the way. Is this injury related to work? Is it necessary to conduct an investigation?

When a person is injured on the way to work, it is considered a work-related circumstance. But it would be wrong to call it production.

An official investigation is carried out:

1. When the employee traveled on transport provided by the enterprise. It is important that the vehicle is used for business purposes.
2. If an employee is injured on a business trip or on the employer’s transport.
3. If a driver is injured during a shift change.
4. During the elimination of the consequences of a disaster, an accident occurs with an employee.

Local regulations should reflect how to regulate issues between the parties in the event of injury on the way to work.

For example, an employee went into the store after work, and then came out and fell on the porch, breaking her leg. Will this case be classified as production related? No, since she originally visited the store.

An employer's actions if an employee is injured at work

If any employee is injured at the workplace or on the way to work, the employer is first of all obliged to:

1. if necessary, provide first aid, call an ambulance or ensure the delivery of the victim to a medical facility;
2. by order, create a commission to investigate the circumstances of the incident and identify those responsible. Its members include representatives of the company administration and the bodies controlling injuries at work;
3. draw up an accident report in a form approved by law.

Work injury: what is it?

The employer pays for sick leave issued at a medical institution according to the analysis of the investigation report. This may be 100% payment or refusal to pay if the employee’s guilt is proven.

For your information! An employee has the right to appeal a negative decision of the administration regarding these payments in court.

Non-work-related injury

If an employee is injured on the way to work, how can one determine whether it was work-related or not? An injury is considered industrial if the employee was on transport provided by the enterprise, but several conditions are taken into account:

• use of a personal car by order of the management of the enterprise, as well as if this information appears in the employment agreement;
• the administration of the enterprise has a copy of the vehicle’s registration certificate;
• The employee's travel is recorded.

If at least one of the conditions is not met, then the injury is classified as domestic.

Preventing accidents at work

Workplace injuries are unpleasant not only because people suffer, but also because they require an investigation into why it happened. Therefore, it is necessary to carry out preventive measures that will reduce their number.

Medical examination at the workplace

These include:

• inspection of premises and equipment;
• employee training in safety rules;
• providing employees with special clothing and protective equipment;
• checking the correct arrangement of workplaces;
• carrying out medical examinations.

Such accident prevention measures are necessary in any workplace.

An injury sustained on the way to or from work is equated to an industrial injury if the nuances listed in the Labor Code of the Russian Federation are observed. To make a decision, it is necessary to assemble a commission, and only after that the employee can count on compensation.

Normative base

The accident investigation is carried out on the basis of:

• labor legislation;
• local acts developed at the enterprise.

If the employee used personal transport for travel or the employment agreement states that the transport is used for personal purposes, then an investigation must be carried out.

Not all injuries are related to work. These include:

• electric shocks, including bodily harm;
• cooling, heat stroke, overheating, frostbite;
• if you have received bites from animals or insects;
• other injuries.

Injury is subject to investigation, but within the limits of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation. Payment is made in full regardless of length of service. The administration's expenses will also be spent on the employee's rehabilitation after illness, the purchase of medicines and other expenses associated with loss of ability to work.

Based on the MSEC results, the percentage of damage caused is determined. After hospitalization in a medical institution, expenses are reimbursed. If the injury is classified as minor, then compensation is provided at the expense of the employer.

Sequence of actions of the victim

If an employee is injured, he must take the following actions:

1. Contact a medical facility for first aid yourself or with the help of witnesses.
2. Write an explanatory note to the employer, describing in detail what happened. Eyewitnesses must also provide information.
3. Submit a certificate from a health center about the severity level.

It is possible that the employee will not immediately report the severity of the injury. In this regard, if the injury makes itself known after the lapse of time, then he can report it at any time. A month is allotted for the investigation.

What should an employer do?

Upon receipt of information about an injury to an employee, the employer is obliged to:

1. Ask the victim and eyewitnesses of the incident to write explanatory notes about this.
2. Create a commission to conduct an investigation. This requires a medical report on the severity.
3. After the investigation, an act is drawn up in form N-1.
4. Sick leave is paid at the expense of the employer if the incident occurred through the fault of the enterprise administration.

The employer's actions are regulated by regulatory documents.

Documenting

Registration of accidents on the way from and to work is no different from the procedure for dealing with injuries in the workplace. The list of required documents is in the Labor Code. It includes the following documents:

• initial report of the inspection of the scene of the incident (No7);
• logbook for recording injuries at work;
• report of injury at work;
• an order to convene a commission of inquiry;
• decision of the commission, certified by all its members, taking into account all the facts and determining the guilty party.

Sample of a work injury report

Registration of the investigation

After interviewing witnesses and the victim, as well as requesting information from the Road Inspectorate (if an accident occurred), the commission draws up an act of form N-1 in triplicate. It is sent to the victim, the employer and the Social Insurance Fund.

Commission to investigate the case

After the creation of the commission, an investigation into the accident begins. If the injury is minor, only employees of the enterprise itself are included in its composition. As a rule, this is the manager, as well as representatives of the human resources and accounting departments. In case of severe injuries, the commission must include representatives of the social service, labor inspectorate and local government bodies. A representative of Rostrud is appointed as the head.

List of documents

To investigate an accident, it is necessary to prepare a list of documents:

1. An order for the enterprise, in which an investigation commission is appointed, headed by a chairman. Interested persons cannot be members of the commission.
2. Documents from a medical organization regarding the severity of the case.
3. Eyewitness testimony and personal explanatory statement from the victim.
4. Videos and photographs from the scene of the incident, whenever possible. If the place cannot be left in the same condition in which the accident occurred, then the video materials will not be in demand.
5. Information on training, copies of personal cards on the issuance of protective clothing and personal protective equipment.
6. The results of a drug test to confirm that the employee was in a normal state.
7. Diagram of the place where the accident occurred.
8. A document that defines the relationship of the accident to the category not related to production.

If the injury occurred on a business trip

A work-related injury can occur while on a business trip. If an employee goes on a business trip or is returning back and an accident occurs along the way, then an investigation is inevitable.

A working day on a business trip is identical to the working time spent at the place of work. When an employee acted in the interests of the administration of the enterprise or in personal interests, this will also be taken into account during the investigation.

The conduct of the investigation may vary depending on the circumstances. If the employee was not seconded to a specific organization, then the investigation commission includes employees who are in charge of the territory of the facility.

The organization's responsibility is to investigate and, among other things:

• you need to notify the insurance service about the incident;
• prepare a report on what happened;
• send a notification to the employer for whom the victim works if the injury has serious consequences (permanent disability or death, and also occurred with several employees at the same time);
• It is necessary to investigate an accident while on a business trip.

Domestic injury

An injury on the way home from work will be considered work-related if the worker is injured while getting out of a company vehicle due to its breakdown. If you were just walking and fell, then this is a domestic injury, provided that this is not the territory of the organization.

A domestic injury must also be confirmed in order to pay for sick leave. If an employee receives a domestic injury, the head of an enterprise has the right to demand the following documents:

A work-related injury while walking to work is not considered, unless it is on company premises. Often in such cases, workers hide the fact of what happened from the employer. Therefore, he has the right to demand an explanation for any injury.

Not all incidents at work are reported to management by workers. The manager may be held liable later, since there is no statute of limitations for considering accidents at the enterprise.

The worker has the right to file a claim with the labor inspectorate, in which case a fine will be imposed on the employer.

Responsibility of the employer when concealing a case

Injury at work is an insured event and the consequences can be compensated in accordance with current legislation. It turns out that the employer is liable if it did not properly investigate the accident.

This is an article included in the administrative code, on the basis of which penalties are established. Penalties apply for this:

• for ordinary citizens the fine amount is set at 300-500 rubles;
• for employees 500 -1000 rubles;
• for organizational structures 5,000 -10,000 rubles.

Responsibility of the production manager

If the investigation confirms that a work-related injury occurred on the way to work, then the employer is liable. The degree depends on its severity and the cause of the incident.

In the event of a fatal accident, the investigation commission will consist of the following representatives:

The commission will look for violations on the part of the worker. If the culprit is identified, he will be subject to disciplinary action. Officials may bear administrative and criminal liability.

Here is an example of administrative fines according to the law:

What payments are due?

If the fact of injury to an employee is confirmed and after an investigation, the first one is entitled to payments from the Social Insurance Fund:

1. According to the submitted sick leave certificate, since temporary incapacity for work has been established.
2. One-time and monthly compensations are paid.
3. Expenses of funds based on the fact of the incident for professional, social or medical rehabilitation are reimbursed.

If an employee is injured as a result of an injury at work, then he is entitled to payment of wages in full, and length of service does not affect the amount. The benefit is paid until the ability to work is restored. Payments per month do not exceed 4 benefits established by the Social Insurance Fund. If earnings are exceeded, the maximum benefit may be paid.

The size depends on the injuries received, which are established on the MSEC. Based on the adopted provision, the maximum amount is established. For some categories, a regional coefficient is paid. When a death occurs, the relatives should receive a million rubles as compensation.

Payment depends on average earnings. In this case, all income previously received by the victim is taken into account, including remuneration under a contract or author’s order.

Inattentive driving

Often, simple inattention or distracted attention leads to an accident. It is enough to be distracted from monitoring the road for a few seconds, and a catastrophe can occur. A pedestrian jumped onto the road, the brake light or turn signal of the car in front came on, and the driver changed lanes from a parallel lane. Inattention can be caused by driving while extremely tired or while under the influence of medications that inhibit the response of the central nervous system. Slow response to changes in traffic conditions also leads to serious accidents.