Car accidents happen to people driving for work every day — delivery drivers, field sales reps, construction workers driving between sites, nurses visiting patients, and countless others. If you were injured in a car accident while on the clock, you may be entitled to pursue two separate claims simultaneously. Here's how it works.
When Are You "On the Job" During a Car Accident?
California workers' compensation covers injuries sustained "arising out of and in the course of employment." For car accidents, this generally includes:
- Driving between work locations or job sites
- Making deliveries or pickups for your employer
- Running errands your employer directed you to perform
- Driving a company vehicle for work purposes
- Traveling to a job site (not your regular office commute)
- Attending an employer-required off-site meeting or event
The "going and coming" rule generally excludes the commute to and from your regular workplace — unless your employer controls your route, you were on call, or you drove a company vehicle.
Workers' Compensation Benefits
If the accident occurred in the course of employment, workers' compensation provides:
- Medical treatment — 100%% of treatment costs related to the injury, with no deductible or co-pay
- Temporary disability (TD) — 2/3 of your average weekly wage (up to the state maximum) while you're unable to work
- Permanent disability (PD) — a rating-based payment if the injury causes lasting impairment
- Supplemental job displacement benefit — voucher for retraining if you can't return to your old job
- Death benefits — for surviving dependents of workers killed on the job
Workers' comp does NOT cover pain and suffering. This is the critical limitation — and why the personal injury claim against the third party (the other driver) is so important. Workers' comp compensates economic losses only. The civil lawsuit against the at-fault driver compensates you for everything workers' comp doesn't cover.
The Third-Party Personal Injury Claim
If a third party — someone other than your employer or a co-worker — caused the accident, you can file a personal injury lawsuit against them in addition to your workers' comp claim. This allows you to recover:
- Full medical expenses beyond what workers' comp pays
- Full lost wages (not capped at 2/3 of your wages)
- Pain and suffering (not available through workers' comp)
- Loss of enjoyment of life
- Future damages
This dual-track recovery is legal and common. Many work-related accident victims significantly under-recover by pursuing only workers' comp without recognizing their third-party claim.
The Lien — Workers' Comp Subrogation
Here's the catch: your workers' compensation insurer (or your self-insured employer) has a right to be reimbursed from your personal injury settlement for the benefits they paid you. This is called subrogation or a "workers' comp lien."
Under California Labor Code § 3856, the workers' comp insurer receives repayment of their lien from your third-party settlement, minus a proportional share of your attorney's fees and costs (the "Witt credit" under Witt v. Jackson).
Net recovery is still larger: Even after the workers' comp lien is repaid, most workers end up with significantly more total recovery through the dual-track approach than from workers' comp alone — particularly because of pain and suffering damages that workers' comp never covers.
Practical Steps If You Were Injured On the Job
- Report the accident to your employer and file a workers' comp DWC-1 claim form immediately
- Seek medical treatment through workers' comp
- Simultaneously consult a personal injury attorney about the third-party claim against the at-fault driver
- Notify your workers' comp insurer that you are pursuing a third-party claim
- Let your attorneys coordinate the two proceedings and lien resolution
Attorney Mark Gonzales handles the third-party personal injury claim while coordinating with your workers' comp benefits. Free consultation — no fee unless we win.
📞 Call 909-587-6336