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Short answer: If the driver who hit you was running an errand for their employer — even in their own personal car, even on the way home — California’s respondeat superior rule (Civil Code § 2338) can put the company’s insurance on your claim, not just the driver’s minimum-limits policy. That is often the difference between a $30,000 ceiling and a $1,000,000 one. Call Sky Law Group at (844) 475-9529 — Hablamos Español.

Here is the scene we see over and over in Orange: a driver rear-ends you at Chapman & Glassell, hands you an insurance card, and says something almost apologetic — “I was just picking up lunch for the office,” or “I was dropping off a deposit for my boss.” You write it down and forget it.

That sentence may be worth more than the police report. It is the difference between a claim against one person’s bare-minimum auto policy and a claim against a business.

Why the driver’s own policy is usually not enough

Since SB 1107 took effect on January 1, 2025, California’s minimum auto liability limits are $30,000 per person / $60,000 per accident / $15,000 property damage. Most drivers carry exactly that and not a dollar more.

One ambulance ride to UCI Medical Center, two days inpatient, an MRI, and a course of physical therapy will exhaust $30,000 before anyone discusses your lost income or your pain. When the at-fault driver was working, though, there is frequently a second and much larger layer of coverage sitting behind them — and nobody at the insurance company is going to volunteer that it exists.

The “coming and going” rule — and the two exceptions that beat it

The general rule in California is that an employer is not responsible for an employee’s ordinary commute. That is the going-and-coming rule from Hinman v. Westinghouse Electric Co. (1970) 2 Cal.3d 956. Defense adjusters cite it immediately and hope you stop reading there.

They rarely mention the two exceptions that swallow it:

1. The required-vehicle exception

If the employer requires — or even just expects and benefits from — the employee using their personal car for work, the drive falls inside the scope of employment. In Lobo v. Tamco (2010) 182 Cal.App.4th 297, an employee who occasionally used his own car for work errands was driving home when he killed a deputy; the employer was on the hook. The car does not have to have a logo on the door.

2. The special-errand exception

If the employee was performing a specific task for the employer’s benefit — the bank run, the supply pickup, the client drop-off, the trip to grab lunch for the team — the trip is a special errand, and the employer answers for it. Boynton v. McKales (1956) 139 Cal.App.2d 777 is the classic statement.

And here is the case that decides most of these claims, which almost no page you will find on this search says out loud: in Moradi v. Marsh USA, Inc. (2013) 219 Cal.App.4th 886, an employee who was required to use her own car for work stopped on the way home for frozen yogurt and a yoga class — and the employer was still liable, because a minor, foreseeable personal stop does not break the chain. A personal detour is not automatically a defense. The jury instructions that govern all of this are CACI Nos. 3720 (scope of employment) and 3723 (substantial deviation) — the question is whether the driver was on a small detour or a genuine frolic, and that line is much friendlier to injured people than adjusters admit.

The document that wins these cases: the mileage reimbursement

California Labor Code § 2802 requires employers to reimburse employees for necessary expenses — including mileage — incurred in the course of their duties. Think about what that means for your claim.

If the company reimbursed that drive, the company has already created a written record, in its own files, stating that the trip was for the company’s benefit. An expense report is a liability admission with a dollar figure attached. We ask for those records early, along with:

• Text messages or Slack/Teams messages from a supervisor sending the driver on the errand
• Delivery, catering, or bank receipts time-stamped near the crash
• The driver’s timecard — were they clocked in?
• Company GPS, fleet, or app data
• The employer’s hired and non-owned auto (HNOA) policy declarations

That last item is the one to remember. Most businesses carry HNOA coverage precisely because their people run errands in personal cars. General liability policies exclude autos; HNOA is the endorsement that fills the hole, and it commonly carries $1 million limits. The employee’s personal policy pays first; the employer’s coverage sits above it. Two policies stacked instead of one — and the second one is the one that actually pays for a surgery.

What a claim like this is worth in Orange County

Injury profile	Typical settlement range
Soft-tissue neck/back, ER visit plus 8–12 weeks of therapy	$18,000 – $45,000
Herniated disc, injections, no surgery	$60,000 – $175,000
Single-level cervical or lumbar fusion	$250,000 – $700,000
Documented traumatic brain injury with cognitive deficits	$500,000 – $3,000,000+
Wrongful death (Code Civ. Proc. § 377.60)	$1,000,000+

Ranges depend on liability clarity, available coverage, and treatment documentation — not on how badly you feel. The reason the employer angle matters so much is simple: on the exact same injuries, a claim capped at $30,000 and a claim reaching a $1 million commercial layer are two different cases.

What the insurance company will not tell you

Three things, consistently:

They will not tell you the employer has coverage. The personal auto carrier has no duty to disclose someone else’s policy. If you never ask who the driver worked for, the file quietly closes at policy limits.

They will coach the driver toward “I was off the clock.” Expect a recorded statement where the driver is walked toward saying the trip was purely personal. That is why we send preservation letters to the employer fast — before timecards, texts, and GPS logs age out. If you have not yet given a recorded statement, read what to do when the adjuster says you were partly at fault first.

They will not mention negligent hiring. If the employer put someone on the road with a suspended license or a known history of unsafe driving, that is the employer’s own negligence (CACI No. 426) — a separate theory that survives even if the scope-of-employment argument fails, and one that can open the door to punitive damages under Civil Code § 3294.

The clocks that are already running

You generally have two years from the crash to file suit under Code of Civil Procedure § 335.1. But if the driver worked for a public employer — the City of Orange, the County of Orange, a school district, OCTA — you have six months to file a written government claim under Government Code § 911.2. Miss it and the case is over before it starts. See our guide to claims against government entities in California.

Business surveillance video along Katella, Tustin Avenue, and around The Outlets at Orange is typically overwritten in 15 to 30 days. The errand proof has a shorter shelf life than your injuries do.

Free bilingual checklist: Text CHECKLIST to (844) 475-9529 and we will send our 48-hour after-crash checklist in English or Spanish — no commitment, no spam.

Frequently asked questions

Can I sue the employer if the driver was in their own personal car?

Yes. Ownership of the car is not the test — scope of employment is. If the driver was performing a task for the employer, or was required to have their car available for work, the employer can be vicariously liable under Civil Code § 2338 regardless of whose name is on the registration.

What if the driver was on the way home from work?

The commute alone usually is not enough, but the required-vehicle exception (Lobo v. Tamco) and the special-errand exception often are. If the employer expected the employee to use that car for work, the drive home can still be within the scope of employment.

What if the driver stopped for coffee or to pick up their child?

A minor, foreseeable personal stop generally does not defeat the claim. Moradi v. Marsh USA is directly on point — a frozen-yogurt and yoga stop did not release the employer. A long, purely personal side trip (a “frolic”) is different, and that is a fact question a jury decides under CACI No. 3723.

How do I prove the driver was working?

Through the employer’s own records: timecards, mileage reimbursement under Labor Code § 2802, expense reports, dispatch texts, delivery receipts, and GPS or app data. We request these in writing immediately, before routine retention policies erase them.

Does workers’ compensation stop me from suing?

No. The workers’ compensation exclusive remedy protects an employer from suit by its own injured employee. You are a third party injured by that employee, so it does not apply to your claim at all.

What if the driver was delivering for DoorDash, Uber Eats, or Amazon Flex?

App-based drivers follow a different coverage structure that turns on whether the app was on and whether a delivery was accepted. We handle those separately — see our pages on being hit by a DoorDash driver and hit by an Amazon Flex driver in Orange County.

What is hired and non-owned auto coverage?

It is a commercial endorsement covering liability when employees drive personal or rented vehicles for company business. It typically carries $1,000,000 limits and sits excess over the employee’s personal policy. Most victims never learn it exists.

Will the employer’s insurance company fight harder?

Usually, yes — more coverage means more defense budget. It also means the money is actually there. That is a trade worth making, and it is exactly why the employer’s carrier moves quickly to characterize the trip as personal.

What if I was partly at fault?

California is a pure comparative fault state, so you still recover, reduced by your percentage. See how comparative negligence works in California.

Can I recover punitive damages?

Not for ordinary negligence. But if the employer knowingly put an unfit or impaired driver on the road, Civil Code § 3294 punitive exposure can attach through the employer’s own conduct. More on punitive damages in California personal injury cases.

How long do I have to act?

Two years under Code of Civil Procedure § 335.1 for a private employer, but only six months under Government Code § 911.2 if a public entity is involved. The practical deadline is much shorter — the employer’s records and nearby video disappear in weeks.

Do you handle these cases in Spanish?

Yes. Sky Law Group has Spanish-speaking attorneys, not a translation line, and we never ask about immigration status. Civil Code § 3339 and Evidence Code § 351.2 make immigration status irrelevant to your claim.

Talk to an Orange County attorney today

Sky Law Group is based in Orange, minutes from Chapman & Glassell and the Orange Crush. We serve Orange, Anaheim, Santa Ana, Irvine, Costa Mesa, Huntington Beach, Garden Grove, Fullerton, Tustin, Mission Viejo, Lake Forest, Newport Beach, Buena Park and Westminster.

If the driver who hit you said anything about work, tell us. That one sentence may be the most valuable fact in your case. Call (844) 475-9529 for a free consultation — Hablamos Español. You pay nothing unless we win. Learn more about our Orange County car accident representation.