A recent decision by the First District Court of Appeal reversing workers’ compensation coverage for injuries sustained by an employee while driving a company vehicle for an HVAC company illustrates the challenges in determining when work begins and ends for employees who are allowed to take company vehicles home. While this case focuses on workers’ compensation claims, the principles can apply to wage, hour, and other labor and employment issues faced by construction companies.

Critical Takeaways

There is a lot to be learned from this case, but first I want to encourage any company that allows its employees to use company vehicles and/or to drive them home to work with an attorney to develop appropriate policies governing their use. Employee use of vehicles does not just raise questions about what to do if an employee gets into a car accident, but it also can raise wage and hour issues and other non-injury labor and employment-related matters. These laws are complicated and require a company to comply with many different regulations at once. Balancing those competing interests correctly is a challenge even under the best of circumstances.

Second, if your company allows employees to use company vehicles and does not have a written policy regarding them, this should be remedied immediately, preferably with the input of an attorney. Finally, make sure you have proper workers’ compensation insurance coverage. While some people or companies may be exempt, confirm how those...

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