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Parking Lot Injuries at Work

Many injuries happen in parking lots when an employee is starting or ending the work day.  As we mentioned in a previous post, the workers compensation law in Georgia covers injuries that arise out of and in the course of employment.

When an injuries happens at the beginning or end of the work day, there is usually a question of whether the injured worker is still “in the course of employment”.  Another way of stating this question is whether the injured worker is still on the job at the time of the injury.

Nurse adjusting walking brace for patient with foot or ankle injury One way of looking at when the injured worker is on the job would be to ask whether the injured employee has “clocked in” or “clocked out” yet.  Luckily, Georgia Workers Compensation law does not focus exclusively on that.  Georgia law often protects injured workers even before they actually “clock in” to work and after they “clock out”.

Employees remain in the course of their employment during a reasonable time of ingress (coming into work) or egress (leaving from work).  Because of this, employees who clock out of work and then slip on a wet floor on the way out of work would likely still receive workers compensation benefits.

How far does reasonable ingress and egress extend?

While employees are covered by workers compensation outside of the actual time they are clocked into work, that coverage is not unlimited.  Generally, the injured employee must still be on the employment premises at the time of the injury.

When the employer owns the whole building and the injury occurs in the building, the injury is generally covered.  Things get a little more complicated sometimes.

One example is when the injured employee works in a building where the employer leases office space and is injured on the way out of the building.  The employer’s control of the location where the employee is injured will be a critical factor in this type of situation.  The availability of other exits from the building will be important as well.


Injured employees are often considered to be engaged in reasonable ingress or egress from work when they are injured coming from or going to their car in a parking lot.  The big question that comes up with parking lot injuries is whether the employer owns or maintains the parking lot.

If the employer owns the parking lot or has responsibility for maintaining it, an injury in the parking lot should be covered under Georgia’s workers compensation law.  If the injured worker parks in a lot which is not owned or maintained by the employer, then the injury is generally not covered.

Employees can still be in the course of employment even if they are not at the job site.  Some employees are considered to be “in the course of employment” around the clock because they are continuously employed.

This category includes traveling employees and on call employees, among others.  These employees generally enjoy much broader workers compensation coverage for injuries than other employees because they are potentially working 24 hours a day.

What if my claim is denied?

The law regarding “in the course of employment” is quite fact specific.  Most injured workers become aware of this issue when they receive a Form WC-3 denying their claim because it did not “arise out of or in the course of employment”.

If your claim is denied by your employer or their workers’ compensation insurance company, you should get a free consultation with an attorney who specializes in workers compensation claims.  This will help you determine what to expect and how you should pursue your case.

What if I have other questions about workers compensation?

Georgia’s workers compensation system can be very confusing.  You have to worry about getting the treatment you need and paying your bills while also worrying about not missing any deadlines that could cause you to lose your right to receive workers compensation benefits.

If you have questions, I would recommend that you try to get answers.  To find out more about how to schedule a time to talk to me about your workers compensation questions, just read this short article.

Jason Perkins is an attorney who specializes in representing injured workers.  He regularly publishes videos and write blog articles about Georgia’s workers compensation system and issues that are important to injured workers and their families.

To be notified of Jason’s new workers compensation videos, subscribe to his Georgia Workers Compensation Video Series channel on YouTube by clicking the subscribe button below.

Brittney-lee orourkeBrittney-lee orourke
05:23 18 Feb 22
Amazing! Jason and his team were very helpful and had the best communication by far. Walked me though every step with great detail and had answers for any question I had. They handled my case better then I could imagine, it was a weird case and they stayed on top of it and kept me updated every step of the way! Highly recommend this Team! Thanks so much to Jason and his Awesome team!-Brittney
China JonesChina Jones
18:58 08 Feb 22
I absolutely love this group of attorneys, when I was at my lowest they did everything they could to help me get justice for my injury. I believe if I were to have never picked my phone up and called the amazing group that helped me I definitely would not have received my idea of rights. If you have an issue and are just not sure please understand that they will help you, stay in contact, answer any question you have, and for sure get you the justice you deserve I thank them from the bottom of my heart and I will definitely refer them to anyone who has been hurt because they most definitely care about their work and clients.
Luv LocsLuv Locs
16:08 15 Jan 22
The entire law office was attentive and responsive to all of my concerns dealing with my workers compensation case.
moombimoombi
21:14 02 Jan 22
If you must get a lawyer involved, you’d do well to work with Jason Perkins and his team at Perkins Studdard Law.They were thorough in gathering information and in sharing all the steps in the workers comp process specific to my case. Jason and the team were responsive to my bevy of questions and concerns.I appreciated the informative videos and consultations provided by Jason over video meetings and multiple phone calls.I hope I’m never injured on the job again. However, if I am and if my employer responds as my previous employer did, I’ll contact Perkins Studdard Law immediately to handle the case.
Dana BessDana Bess
23:57 10 Dec 21
Everyone at Perkins Studdard was kind and professional. They were always extremely responsive and answered all questions that I had and followed up to make sure I had an understanding of what was going on along with emailing videos to explain every step of my case so I would know what to expect and be prepared. Jason is a very genuine person and I trusted him with my case. He answered so many questions for me even before I retained him as my WC lawyer. I highly recommend him and his associates at Perkins Studdard.
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