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What Is the Going-and-Coming Rule in CA Workers' Comp?
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By Eman Yazdchi, Esq. · Certified Specialist in Workers' Compensation Law, State Bar of California Board of Legal Specialization · Cal Bar #285231
What Is the Going-and-Coming Rule in California Workers' Comp?
The going-and-coming rule means your regular commute is not covered by workers' comp, but six recognized exceptions can make it compensable.
You were on your way to work, or maybe heading home after a long shift, when something went wrong. A car accident. A fall. An injury you did not see coming. Now you are wondering if workers' comp will pay for your medical care and cover the income you are losing while you recover.
The honest answer is: it depends on the facts. California starts with a presumption that the drive to and from your regular workplace is personal time. But that presumption has six important exceptions. Many workers who receive an initial denial still have a valid claim once the details are examined closely.
This page breaks down the rule, every exception that can turn a commute injury into a covered claim, and what benefits you can expect if coverage applies.
Why Does the Ordinary Commute Fall Outside Workers' Comp?
Workers' comp requires an injury to occur in the course of employment. A routine drive to a fixed workplace falls outside that legal boundary.
California Labor Code 3600 sets the threshold: an injury must happen "in the course of employment" to be compensable. Courts have consistently held that the standard commute to a fixed job site does not meet that standard. While you are driving to work on your usual route, you are not yet performing any task for your employer. Your employer is not directing your route, controlling your vehicle, or paying you for that time.
The going-and-coming rule applies with equal force on the way home. Once you leave employer property at the end of your shift, you return to personal time. An accident on the freeway during that drive home is generally not a workers' comp claim.
The rule is not about blame. It is a line the law draws between personal time and employment time. That line shifts the moment one of the recognized exceptions applies.
What Six Exceptions Can Make a Commute Injury Compensable?
Six legal exceptions bring a commute injury inside the course of employment when the employer has a real stake in the worker's travel.
1. Special mission or errand. When your employer asks you to handle a specific work task during your commute (stop at a client location, pick up supplies, deliver paperwork), that trip becomes a "special mission." An injury on that errand is covered. Example: your supervisor calls before you leave home and asks you to pick up blueprints from a sub-contractor on the way in. You are rear-ended completing that stop. Workers' comp covers you.
2. Employer-paid travel time. When your employer pays you for the time spent traveling, the trip is no longer personal. Paid travel time signals the employer has taken control of that portion of your day. Example: a home health aide who is paid from the moment she leaves one patient's home until she arrives at the next is covered throughout all of that driving.
3. Required company vehicle. If your employer requires you to drive a company vehicle home (not just offers it as a convenience), courts often find the commute falls within the course of employment. The employer's interest in that vehicle extends coverage into what would otherwise be personal time. If taking the vehicle home is optional and primarily for your convenience, the exception may not apply.
4. Traveling employee with no fixed workplace. A worker whose job requires regular movement between multiple sites has no single fixed place of employment. For these workers, travel is part of the job itself. This category includes field inspectors, outside sales representatives, route drivers, home health workers, and construction workers who move between sites each day. The drive from home to the first job location of the day may also be covered.
5. Dual-purpose trip. If a trip serves both a personal purpose and a genuine business purpose for the employer, it may qualify for coverage. The business purpose must be real, not trivial. Example: a sales representative drives to a scheduled customer meeting. On the same route, she stops briefly to fill a personal prescription. The dominant purpose of the trip is business. Coverage likely applies to the entire drive.
6. Premises line rule. Coverage begins when you step onto property your employer owns or controls. This exception is covered in detail in the next section.
| Commute Scenario | Covered? | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Driving your own car on your regular route to the same office each day | No | Ordinary commute, no employer stake in the trip |
| Stopping at a supplier at your manager's request on the way in | Yes | Special mission for the employer |
| Home health aide driving between patient homes on paid time | Yes | Employer-paid travel time |
| Required to take the company truck home each night | Yes | Required company vehicle |
| Field inspector driving to a different site each morning | Yes | Traveling employee, no fixed workplace |
| Sales rep injured while driving to a customer meeting | Yes | Dual purpose, traveling employee |
| Slip in the company parking lot before clocking in | Yes | Premises line rule, on employer property |
| Car accident on a public street two blocks from work | Usually No | Not yet on employer premises, ordinary commute |
How Does the Premises Line Rule Determine Coverage?
The moment you step onto employer-controlled property, you are in the course of employment. Injuries there are covered before and after your shift.
The going-and-coming exclusion ends at your employer's property line. Company parking lots, internal walkways, stairwells, and elevators are all employer premises. If you slip on ice in the company parking lot before clocking in, that is a workers' comp injury. The shift has not started, but the employment relationship has, because you are on the employer's property.
The rule cuts the other way too. If you fall on the public sidewalk right outside the front door, you are generally not covered. You have not yet crossed onto employer property. Even though you are steps from the entrance, you are still in personal time.
Gray areas do come up. If your employer leases a nearby parking facility and maintains control over access, that lot may qualify as employer premises. If a third party owns the lot without employer involvement, coverage becomes less certain. An attorney can evaluate these facts and challenge a denial if the insurer has drawn the line in the wrong place.
What Benefits Apply If Your Commute Injury Is Covered?
A covered commute injury triggers the full range of workers' comp benefits as any other work injury, with no out-of-pocket cost to you.
Medical care is paid at 100% with no copay under Labor Code 4600. If you miss work, you receive temporary disability pay equal to two-thirds of your average weekly wage. Your first payment is due within 14 days of your employer learning of the injury and your lost time, under Labor Code 4650. A late payment automatically adds a 10% penalty to what you are owed.
Once your employer receives your claim form, they have 90 days to investigate. Under Labor Code 5402, if they do not accept or deny within 90 days, the claim is presumed compensable. During that investigation window, Labor Code 5402(c) requires your employer to authorize up to $10,000 in treatment regardless of the eventual outcome.
| Benefit | 2026 Amount or Rule |
|---|---|
| Medical care | 100% covered, no copay. Treatment follows MTUS guidelines through your employer's Medical Provider Network. |
| Temporary disability (TD) | Two-thirds of average weekly wage. Min $264.61/wk, max $1,764.11/wk. Up to 104 weeks within 5 years. |
| Permanent disability (PD) | Rated 0-100% for lasting impairment. $160 to $290/wk depending on rating. Ratings at 70% or higher add a lifetime pension. |
| Job retraining voucher | Up to $6,000 if you cannot return to your prior position. |
| Medical mileage | 72.5 cents per mile to and from treatment (2026 rate). |
Workers' comp benefits are not taxable income under federal or California law. You keep every dollar of disability pay and medical reimbursement you receive.
Injured at work? Call (661) 273-1780
Tap to call →Greater Los Angeles workers face this issue every day. Long commutes across LA County, the Antelope Valley, and the San Fernando Valley put millions of people on the road for hours. Whether you are a healthcare worker traveling between patients in the Valley, a field technician covering sites across the Antelope Valley, or a warehouse employee who was asked to make a stop at your supervisor's request, one of the going-and-coming exceptions may apply to your situation in ways that are not obvious at first glance.
Insurance adjusters often deny commute injury claims on the spot, without examining whether any exception fits the specific facts of your case. That denial is not final. Many initially denied claims are successfully reopened when the right questions are asked about who directed your travel, whether your employer paid for your time, and where exactly the injury happened.
Eman Yazdchi is a Certified Specialist in workers' compensation law, certified by the California Board of Legal Specialization, State Bar of California. Yazdchi Law represents injured workers across the Antelope Valley, the San Fernando Valley, and Greater Los Angeles, with WCAB appearances at Van Nuys, Los Angeles, Long Beach, Pomona, San Bernardino, Riverside, and Oxnard.
If you were hurt on the way to or from work, call for a free consultation before you accept a denial. There is no fee unless you win. Reach us at (661) 273-1780.
Related questions
Keep reading to understand your California workers' comp benefits, your medical rights, and your next step after an injury.
Frequently Asked Questions
My employer's insurance denied my claim because I was hurt on the way to work. Is that automatically the end of my case?
No. An initial denial for a commute injury is not the end of your case. Adjusters often apply the general rule without examining whether any exception fits. If your employer gave you a task to complete during the commute, required you to use a company vehicle, or if you work between multiple sites, you may have a valid claim. An attorney can review the facts and file to contest the denial at the Workers' Compensation Appeals Board.
I was in a car accident while running an errand my manager texted me to do. Is that covered?
Yes, almost certainly. When your employer or supervisor asks you to handle something specific during your commute, that creates a special mission. A special mission transforms personal travel into covered work travel. Save the text message or voicemail from your manager, because it is key evidence. Do not let an insurer treat this as a standard commute denial without examining the full facts of what you were asked to do.
I work from home some days and drive to the office on others. Does the going-and-coming rule apply on office days?
On office days, the standard going-and-coming rule generally applies to your commute. On days you work entirely from home, there is no commute at all. However, if your employer sends you to a client location or a job site on a home-office day, that drive may be covered as a special mission or traveling-employee situation. Hybrid work cases have become increasingly fact-specific, and the details of your specific arrangement matter significantly.
I slipped in the company parking lot before I clocked in. Workers' comp denied it because my shift had not started yet. Is that denial correct?
No, that denial is very likely wrong. The premises line rule says coverage begins when you enter property your employer owns or controls. The company parking lot qualifies as employer premises. An injury there is within the course of employment regardless of whether you have clocked in yet. Pre-shift injuries in company parking lots are compensable under consistent WCAB decisions. Push back on that denial with legal help before accepting it as final.
I drive a company vehicle home every night. Does that make my commute covered?
Possibly, but it depends on whether your employer requires you to bring the vehicle home or merely allows it. If the employer directs you to take the vehicle home so it is available for early calls, after-hours emergencies, or next-day readiness, courts generally find the commute is covered. If taking the vehicle home is optional and for your own convenience, the exception may not apply. The distinction often turns on the employer's written policy and the reason behind the practice.
How do I know if I qualify as a traveling employee for workers' comp purposes?
A traveling employee is someone whose job requires regular movement between multiple work locations with no single fixed workplace. Common examples include outside sales representatives, field inspectors, route drivers, home health workers, and construction workers assigned to different sites each day. If you report to a different location each morning rather than returning to the same office or job site, you likely qualify. For these workers, injuries during travel, including sometimes the drive from home to the first location, are typically covered.
Last reviewed by Eman Yazdchi, Esq., June 2026.
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