An employee is commuting to work in employer-provided carpool vans and suffers an injury. The injury is:

• A. Noncompensable
• B. Non compensable because of the going and coming rule
• C. Compensable
• D. Compensable as an exception to the going and coming rule

Answer: (D)

The key idea here is the going-and-coming rule and its exceptions in California workers’ compensation. Normally, injuries that happen while an employee is commuting to or from work are not compensable. But there are notable exceptions when the employer provides transportation for the employee.

In this scenario, the employee is commuting in employer-provided carpool vans. That means the travel is arranged by the employer and is part of performing the employer’s business needs, so the injury occurred in the course of employment. Because of this employer-provided transportation, the going-and-coming rule does not apply in the usual way, making the injury compensable as an exception to the rule.

If the employee had used personal transportation or if the employer hadn’t provided the vehicle, the injury would more likely be noncompensable. The reason this choice is best is that it explicitly cites the exception to the going-and-coming rule, which is the precise reason the injury is compensable here.