Workers’ compensation benefits are not available to a worker injured when he was chased and hit by a golf cart driven by a co-worker who claimed he was just horsing around.
The Virginia Court of Appeals ruled that Dennis Ocasio’s injuries on the job at Camping World RV Sales were the result of an assault that was personal, not horseplay, and thus they were not eligible for workers’ compensation. The court reversed a grant of coverage by the Virginia Workers’ Compensation Commission (VWCC) which had ruled that Ocasio’s injuries were the result of horseplay based upon the stated intent of Gunnar Tazelaar, the co-worker driving the golf cart.
An injury from horseplay is presupposed to be “inherent to the injured co-worker’s employment” and automatically satisfies Virginia’s actual risk test for determining if an injury is compensable under the workers’ compensation act. However, when an employee’s injuries arise from a common law assault or battery, there must be a proven connection between the assault or battery and the employment in order for the injuries to be compensable. When the tort is purely personal to the employee, “liability rests on the tortfeasor rather than the employer.”
In July 2021, Ocasio, an operations manager for Camping World, was walking in the company’s yard while a customer followed behind in his vehicle. As he walked, Ocasio saw Tazelaar driving a golf cart in his direction. As Tazelaar accelerated toward him, Ocasio extended his arms and shouted, “What are you doing?” When Ocasio tried to step out of the way, Tazelaar turned the cart to aim it at him. Unable to evade the cart, Ocasio explained that his arms struck the side of the golf cart, his knees struck the front bumper, his hands hit the cart, and his upper body hit the frame supporting the cart’s roof. A large piece of cardboard loaded in the cart struck him in the mouth, drawing blood. He testified that he landed in a crouching position with his hands on the ground. The customer testified that Ocasio stumbled but did not fall. Ocasio alleged that the collision injured his arms and legs.
