Injuries away from your usual workplace
Sometimes injuries happen when you’re travelling to or from work, or when you’re working somewhere other than your usual workplace. If you’re hurt while travelling for work, on a recess break, working from home, or doing something connected to your job, you may still be able to make a workers’ compensation claim.
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Injuries while travelling to, from or for work
You could be injured while travelling:
- between your home and your workplace
- to or from training related to your job (such as to a trade, technical or other training school)
- to or from medical or rehabilitation appointments under an existing claim with us
- between different jobs with different employers
- locally, interstate or overseas for work, such as for a conference or meeting.
When you can claim
To be covered, you must be travelling between your home and your workplace (or other location listed above) without significant interruptions or detours.
You also need to have started your trip home without major delays.
We’ll look at your individual circumstances when we assess your claim.
If you’re injured travelling outside your usual work location
If you’re hurt while travelling away from your normal workplace (for example, to another city, state or country) your employment must be a significant contributing factor to your injury.
If you’re injured before starting your journey
If you’re injured before leaving home, you’re not considered to have started your work-related journey.
In this case, you won’t be able to get compensation.
This rule is set out in workers’ compensation legislation.
Injuries while on a break
If you’re injured while temporarily away from work on a break, such as a lunch break, you may be covered for workers’ compensation. This is called a recess claim.
You can’t be covered if you were injured while doing something that involved an abnormal risk of injury.
We’ll look at your individual circumstances when we assess your claim.
Injuries while working from home
If you’re injured while working from home, your injury may be covered if it happened because of your work or while you were doing your work.
Most of the time, your employment must also be a significant contributing factor to your injury.
We’ll look at your individual circumstances when we assess your claim.
Making a claim
If you or someone you care for is injured on the way to or from work, while travelling for work, or on a break, we’re here to help.
Find out how to make a claim.
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