3 Situations As A Trucker When Injuries May Not Qualify For Workers' Compensation Coverage

Law Blog

As a truck driver, your job involves the operation of a massive vehicle, so there is always the potential of an accident occurring or an injury happening, whether it is due to an auto accident or otherwise. While workers' compensation is designed to pick up the tab when someone on the job gets hurt, there are some situations when this form of business insurance will not pay an employee for the costs they incur. Here is a closer look at some situations as a truck driver when your injuries may not be covered by workers' comp:

Your injuries are considered to be self-inflicted. 

Say you have a really rough trip. You've been running low on sleep, you miss your load delivery time, and you lose your temper. You punch the side of the semi-truck out of frustration and break your hand. This is the type of on-the-job injury that would not be covered by workers' compensation. Any time an injury is deemed self-inflicted, or directly the result of an action you did, workers' comp does not have to pay because technically, you are at fault for your own situation. 

Your injury occurred while you were committing a crime. 

This is a less likely scenario for most truck drivers, but just the same, it can happen. If there is ever a line crossed in your truck driving position in which you've broken a law, any injuries sustained at that time can be your own responsibility to bear. For example, if you are caught transporting drugs in the truck because of equipment failure that caused you to have an accident, workers' comp could claim you were breaking the law on the job, so they don't have to cover your injuries. 

Your injury occurred because you were under the influence of drugs or alcohol.  

There are good reasons why truck drivers are expected to do drug tests when they are hired on as a driver and even at random as an employee. Driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol can make you a liability for the trucking company. If you are involved in an accident on the job, it is common for a drug test to be given by your employer to determine if you are intoxicated. If you are indeed intoxicated at the time of an injury or accident as a trucker, workers' compensation will most likely not cover your claim. 

Check out a website like https://www.shayandassociates.com/ for more information and assistance. 

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30 October 2017

Knowing Your Legal Rights Can Help You Greatly in Life

Like many people, I once found learning about law very intimidating. My brother went to law school and I remember glancing through a few of his books and wondering if I was actually reading English due to all of the legal jargon in them! However, when I ended up in a sticky legal situation due to accidentally breaking a small law I didn't know existed, I realized that I needed to learn more about the law, so I could make sure to follow it precisely in the future. My brother helped to break down some complicated legal concepts to me, and I have since been studying up online. I want to post what I have learned and continue to learn about law in the future on my new blog, so my knowledge cannot only help myself, but also help others!