Labor law: A planned visit to the doctor before starting work is not covered by accident insurance

Created: 08/30/2022, 14:23

The direct route to work is insured – the situation is different if a doctor’s appointment is made before the start of the shift.

A commuting accident does not necessarily apply.

A quick visit to the doctor before work – even if this has been agreed with your manager, you may not have accident insurance.

This is what happened to a man who had an accident on his way from the doctor to work.

The Social Court of Oldenburg refuses to recognize a commuting accident in this case.

Only direct routes from home to work and vice versa count as commuting accidents.

© Imago

Accident on the way: Only direct routes are insured

The professional association to which the incident was reported refuses to recognize an accident at work according to the DGB legal protection.

The background is that the plaintiff was not pursuing any insured activity at the time of the accident, but had acted "self-economically".

This means that his activity, in this case the journey from the doctor to the place of work, was not carried out for professional reasons.

It goes on to say that it is a so-called detour that was planned from the outset.

There is no insurance coverage for such routes.

Even a prior agreement with the supervisor that a doctor's visit is pending and then work will start is not enough to create insurance cover.

The social court that was consulted decided that an agreement was not important and that the plaintiff had not traveled a route that was insured.

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Measures to maintain health are part of the personal sphere of life

Basically, according to the DGB statement, measures to maintain and restore health are to be assigned to the personal area of ​​life.

As a result, they are not insured.

By visiting the doctor, the plaintiff did not fulfill any official duty.

Accidents on the way to and from work only direct routes are insured

Anyone who drives from their home to work is insured - if an accident occurs in this area, the so-called commuting accident takes effect.

However, the direct route must be taken, that the route should not be carried out with deviations or longer stops.

If there are interruptions or deviations, then one speaks of a so-called deviation.

However, according to the explanations of the DGB, a detour can be ended again.

This is the case when the actual distance between home and work is resumed.

If this is achieved again, then the insurance cover will exist again.

In the case of the plaintiff, this route was not reached before the accident.

In principle, there is the possibility that the doctor's office can be considered a "third place" and thus represents the beginning of the commute to work.

In this case, however, the Federal Social Court ruled that the stay at a third location must last at least two hours.

This was not the case with the plaintiff.

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commuting accident or not?

Get advice when describing the accident

If you have an accident on the way to work, to be on the safe side, seek legal advice on exactly how to apply.

The permit usually depends on small details that decide whether your accident was a commuting accident or not.