What You Need to Know About Vicarious Liability If Hurt While Working for a Non-Subscriber Employer in Texas

You were hurt at work because a coworker messed up. Your employer does not provide workers’ compensation benefits, so where can you turn for help to pay your medical bills and lost wages? Under these circumstances, you might be able to sue your employer, and you NEED to know about vicarious liability and how it impacts your non-subscriber employer. This is one of the ways you may be able to pursue damages against your non-subscriber employer if you've been in a workplace accident caused by someone else’s negligence.

Vicarious liability is an important concept if you work for a non-subscriber employer and are hurt on the job as a result of the coworker's actions. In that situation, your employer may be vicariously liable for the actions of another employee who harmed you in the course of doing their job. Your employer didn’t harm you directly but has harmed you vicariously through the action of your coworker, and our Houston work injury lawyer can help prove it.

A Few Key Conditions for Vicarious Liability

In order for your non-subscriber employer (that is, an employer who does not participate in the workers’ compensation program) to be held vicariously liable, a few conditions must be met.

These include:

• The coworker who caused your injury must be employed by the company in question
• You were injured as a result of a careless coworker's actions
• At the time of the careless actions, your coworker was working under the authority of your mutual employer and performing normal duties related to their work and the company’s overall interests.

Your employer would not be subject to vicarious liability if you were hurt because your coworker was horsing around inappropriately in ways not related to their actual job or actually intended to hurt you because they were angry (or for any other reason). There are a few exceptions, but in this case, it would be if your employer knew your coworker had a history of violence and did nothing to address the situation.

If Non-Subscriber Employer Liability Is in Play, Our Houston Injury Lawyer Can Help!

Our Houston injury lawyer at SJ Injury Attorneys is experienced with cases against non-subscriber employers. If you have been hurt at work due to the work-related actions of a coworker, we can help fight to ensure that your employer is held responsible and that you are properly compensated. Contact us today to discuss your case during a free, no-cost case evaluation with our Houston injury lawyer.

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