Which scenario illustrates a valid exception to the coming-and-going rule due to a special risk?

• A. Injury that occurs during a private errand after work.
• B. Injury that occurs while commuting strictly for personal reasons.
• C. Injury that occurs in the employer's parking lot while performing a work-related task.
• D. Injury that occurs during a lunch break off-site.

Answer: (C)

The coming-and-going rule says injuries while going to or returning from work are usually not covered, but there are exceptions when the injury arises from a special risk connected to the job or happens on the employer’s premises. The scenario where the injury occurs in the employer’s parking lot while the worker is performing a work-related task fits this exception. The parking lot is under the employer’s control, and the activity is tied to the job, so the injury can arise out of and in the course of employment despite the trip being part of commuting. This makes it compensable.

In contrast, an injury during a private errand after work isn’t connected to the job, and a personal commute is the textbook case of the rule. A lunch break off-site might be compensable in some circumstances, but it isn’t the clearest example of the special-risk exception tied to exercising work-related duties in the employer’s space.