Company driven vehicles to and from work

sand2ee

If you are an employer, in the state of Florida, employing sevice technicians that take company vehicles home at night, who is responsible if there was an accident during the travel time going to a job site and going home from a job site if we supply the job location. Is it legal to have an employee wait to punch in on the job in the a.m. and punch out upon completition of their last job? If so, then who would be responsible during the unpaid driving time should an accident occur while traveling to the first call of the day and from the last call of the day? Would our insurer be responsible or would our employee be required to have a supplemental policy covering the travel time while in the company vehicle not on company time for the liability to the third party?

Theresa Gegen TX

[font size="1" color="#FF0000"]LAST EDITED ON 11-26-01 AT 10:30AM (CST)[/font][p]In almost every state (and I am sure that Florida is not an exception) if the employee is traveling for business, the employer is responsible. Normally an employee going to work in the morning and home at night are not traveling for business, but in your case, the employee is transporting the company's equipment to the worksite. So more likley than not, the employer would be responsible for an accident (the employee is still responsible for his own negligence, but the employer may also be responsible, so if a claim were made or a lawsuit were to occur, both the employer and the employee would be on the hook. Since employers almost always have more assets than employees, any person who sues will sue the employer too -- to get to the deep pockets).

As for paying the employees for the travel time, under the Fair Labor Standards Act, you probably have to do so. Because the employee is transporting company equipment to the worksite, the employee is working. However, I believe the FLSA allows an employer to pay a lower rate for the travel time (for example, travel time could be paid at minimum wage). I had this case arise with photographers who drove company trucks fitted with news equipment to the news area. The DOL said they had to be paid, which resulted in a big overtime liability.

These issues can be somewhat factually specific depending on whether the automobile is provided for the employees benefit or the employers benefit, whether the employee can use the automobile for personal business, and whether the employee has the option of leaving the automobile at the worksite.


Good Luck!!

Theresa Gegen
Texas Employment Law Letter

njjel

Theresa - Do you know if this applies to interstate and intrastate truck drivers? And if so, does the employer have to pay overtime if the travel time added to the regular work time is over 40 hours?

sand2ee

[font size="1" color="#FF0000"]LAST EDITED ON 11-27-01 AT 11:42PM (CST)[/font][p]Theresa:

Thank you for your reply.

The vehicles in question are for company use only and are used to transport company related materials to and from the job sites. They are not intended for personal use other than driving to and from assigned jobs. Unless these employees live in deed restricted areas they are required to bring their vehicles home. I also appreciate your tip regarding FLSA, I will contact their offices regarding pay for travel time.