Employers' liability insurance, or by its other name - employers' liability, is intended to provide coverage to the business owner in situations where tort claims are filed against him by any of his employees.
These claims may be filed in different scenarios, mainly following a physical injury at work (usually an accident), the employer's negligence or an occupational disease that has been proven to have been caused during and as a result of the work.
In fact, there are a series of laws and obligations concerning the employer's commitment to the safety and security of all employees.
Also, he must comply with a series of safety procedures according to standards regulated by law.
When a work accident occurs, the employee may file a lawsuit against the employer demanding compensation for the extent of the physical damage he suffered.
It is the responsibility of the court to check the circumstances and the conduct of the employer and to determine whether he completely complied with all the safety standards and procedures established by law in order to prevent the occurrence of the accident.
If the court determines that there is fault in the conduct of the employer and due to failure to comply with the safety procedures set forth in the law, one of the employees was physically injured, the employer will be obliged to provide compensation to the employees for the accident, and as we know, these are compensations in very high amounts.
Such accidents can cost a lot of money (Photo: ShutterStock)
Attorney Gil Ben Ari (Photo: Public Relations)
In the tort forum, it is noted that employers' insurance is often purchased as part of a business insurance policy, but there are quite a few situations and cases in which the employer is required to purchase insurance separately.
And examples of employers who saved by the skin of their teeth after purchasing such a policy - there is no shortage.
For example, recently, an insurance company was ordered to pay a huge sum of NIS 1.7 million to the widow of a truck driver.
This is an accident that occurred in 2011, when the driver fell from the trunk at a height of 2.8 meters after being required to walk as part of his work on a narrow platform of the truck.
The court accepted the position of the plaintiff's attorney, attorney Gil Ben Ari, an expert in tort law, and determined that the employer's conduct amounts to a violation of the existing basic obligation to provide the employee with a safe work environment.
The unusual amount, which was also approved by the district court, despite the fact that the victim's orthopedic disability was 30% due to an uncomfortable ankle sprain, an unusual medical condition in which the ankle cannot be moved at all, and due to the losses caused to the victim over the years.
It should be noted that in the aforementioned case, the victim died in another accident that occurred in 2021, but the trial continued and the verdict, including the high compensation, was given despite this.
In another case, the district court in Haifa recently ruled that the families of two workers at an equipment company who died in a fire in a warehouse breach will be compensated with millions of shekels.
Judge Ebrahim Bolus determined that the employer lost their lives when she did not ensure that the warehouse had a smoke detection and fire extinguishing system, as well as means for emergency lighting.
Another anchor for the warning provided by the tort forum can be found in the report mapping occupational safety and health data written by the Knesset's research department.
According to the data, for example, in 2020 no less than 8,500 work accidents were reported, some of which (the rate was not specified) were caused by the negligence of the employer.
Even if we assume for the purpose that it is a low rate of 20%, still, it is about damages amounting to hundreds of millions of shekels which the employers will be required to pay out of their own pockets, insofar as they have not been equipped with employers' liability insurance.
"We implore the public employers not to be complacent about the issue of purchasing employers' liability insurance, which, although not required by law, is certainly required by reality. Over the course of the past year, we have come across cases in which businesses went bankrupt due to their obligation to pay compensation without being equipped with relevant insurance. Do not be complacent" .
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