Who's workers' comp policy covers injuries on a different companies property? - HR Insights

Who's workers' comp policy covers injuries on a different companies property?

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Question:

An employee of mine slipped and hurt his back while out at a vendor’s workplace. Does our company workers' comp policy have to cover him, or is that the vendor’s responsibility?

Who's workers' comp policy covers injuries on a different companies property?

Answer:

It is the employer’s responsibility to submit a worker’s compensation claim for any injury their employee sustained while working.

Long Answer

A rare question with a definitive answer! While your first thought may be to think the vendor’s policy – the accident did occur in their workplace – that’s not the case. Worker’s compensation is to cover on the job injuries. This isn’t limited to injuries within your own place of business, it’s for any injury an employee might have sustained while conducting work, regardless of the location. That means, if the employee is out meeting vendors as part of their job, any injury sustained while doing so could be seen as a workplace injury. Of course, the employee filing a worker’s comp claim would still have to prove the injury was related to their employment.

So if an employee gets hurt while on the job, even outside of your workplace, it’s your responsibility as an employer to file a worker’s compensation claim. But if somehow this is a regular occurrence, maybe consider asking your vendor to meet online.

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Who's workers' comp policy covers injuries on a different companies property?

Please note: This information is not legal advice and may not reflect specific state or local requirements.