No comp for worker injured traveling home in employer-provided vehicle
A Florida appellate court on Wednesday ruled that a worker’s injuries from an accident while traveling home from work in an employer-provided vehicle were not compensable.
Aaron Kohlun worked as an air conditioning service technician for Kelly Air Systems LLC. Mr. Kohlun's responsibilities included performing service calls for the company within a four-county area. Kelly provided Mr. Kohlun with a company vehicle, according to documents in Kelly Air Systems LLC v. Kohlun, filed in Tallahassee.
Kelly’s employment manual provided that Mr. Kohlun had the exclusive ability to drive his employer-provided car to and from work and to make incidental personal trips on the way to and from work, including stopping for gas or groceries. Mr. Kohlun was not required to drive Kelly's vehicle to and from work but was permitted to do so at his convenience.
Mr. Kohlun suffered injuries in an accident in the company car. He was traveling from his final service call location and had clocked out of work for the evening by reporting to his supervisor that he had finished his work for the day.
Mr. Kohlun filed a workers compensation claim, seeking benefits for his injuries. A judge of compensation claims found his injuries were compensable.
In reversing and remanding, the Court of Appeal for the 1st District of Florida said that Mr. Kohlun had clocked out for the day and was driving from work in an employer-provided vehicle available for his exclusive personal use for travel to and from work, the court said he was not still "at work" when the accident occurred. Mr. Kohlun's injury, therefore, is not compensable, the court said.
WorkCompCentral is a sister publication of Business Insurance. More stories here.
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