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Posted By Nicholas Williams
Help please from our legal eagles.
2 employees are knocked off their motorbike on their way to work.Does the employer have a right to recovery of lost wages / replacement workers from the driver.
My immediate thought is that there is no duty of care owed by the driver to the employer but I'd like the discussion please.
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Posted By Robert Jackson
I'm no legal eagle but I would check against RIDDOR Regs as i seem to think there is an obligation to report it?
Maybe thats just if the person is travelling as part of their work and not commuting - not sure but worth a check up
Rmj
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Posted By 9-Ship
I they were on their way to work, the accident is not RIDDOR reportable - because they were not 'at' work.
Hence any injuries did not arise/happen because of a work activity.
RIDDOR is concerned with work related injuries not road traffic accidents, in this sense.
As regards recovery of money, that's an employment law question and/or matter between the injured people and the person/company at fault.
Recovery of wages would be part of the personal injury claim arising out of the accident - probably payable by the insurance company of the at fault party.
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Posted By Ali
Although not at work, the main purpose of their journey was in connection with work unless they were going somewhere first eg dropping off kids.
As a Rep, your work starts as soon as you leave home and not neceesarily when you arrive. However, I'm only playing devil's advocate and I would seek legal advice on this one.
Ali
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Posted By Anwar Afzal
Road accident is exactly that and therefore covered by the Road Traffic Act and not under RIDDOR.
Anwar
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Posted By John Webster
I would doubt if the employer could recover damages for loss of staff. I think you would be considered too remote to be the "neighbour" of the guilty driver, and therefore not owed a duty of care. However, If you did not pay your injured employees, they would be able to recover their loss - probably from the insurers without it having to go to court.
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Posted By DJ
The answer is it depends:
The general rule is that the employer cannot claim against the driver.
However, if the employer has paid wages to the employee and he is able to (contractually) recover those wages from the employee, the employee would be able to include that amount as part of any claim against the driver, who would be liable to pay (in the same way as recoverable state benefits).
The accident is highly unlikely to be RIDDOR reportable, as commuting to and from work is not generally regarded as "work-related" travel.
Regards.
DJ
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Posted By RP
Recovery of Wages - This would be an insurance claim for uninsured loss, often taken in a civil court. It is often the injured persons insurance company that would sort it out and may require a visit to court.
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Posted By anon1234
'on way to work' not 'at work' therefore not RIDDOR.
As other respondants have said I doubt very much if you would have a claim against the 'at fault' person
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Posted By Bill Parkinson
I have had to deal with this situation before and consulted with the HSE. I found that:
Travel to your normal place of work from your home is not working time and therefore you are not at work. If you are travelling to somewhere else at the behest of your employer then you will be deemed to be at work.
Any incident which is subject to the Road Traffic Act is not reportable under RIDDOR (ask the HSE Inspectors - when I asked there was some colourful language in response!!).
Any attempt to recover any losses due to staff being off will get bogged down in legal arguements between insurers and solicitors and cost more than you will recover (if any).
There is also the possibility if they were not travelling to their normal place of work of a HSE Investigation of the employer as the vehicles become subject to PUWER (as they are on business use) and whether the employer has made checks on adequate insurance cover, check licences on a regular basis, undertaken a risk assessment with regards to amount of "time at work" on the road etc.
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Posted By Heather Collins
DJ is right. The driver owes no duty of care to the employer. Only the employees can recover costs from the driver - this is done by means of a civil claim (proabably through their insurance company - this is why you should always have motor legal protection).
If the employer pays sick pay as a result of this accident and if it is part of the employees' contracts (or a contractual clause in the sick pay scheme) that costs may be recovered from an employee in the event of a successful third party claim then the answer is that the money can be recovered.
I have been involved in this several times. Here's what needs to happen. The employees make a claim against the driver. Their insurance company asks the employer for evidence of the sick pay paid and evidence that they may contractually recover it - i.e. a copy of the relevant clause in the contract or sick pay scheme that says this. If the insurance company doesn't ask for this then provide it anyway when they ask for loss of earnings info and point out that you expect the sick pay costs repaid.
When the employees win the claim, the insurance company sends you a cheque.
No third party claim, no possibility of recovery.
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