With nearly 2,000 teleworking agreements signed within companies in France in 2020, more and more employers are wondering about the coverage of employees who work at home. What insurance comes in if the employee breaks the computer loaned by his employer? What happens if the employee has an accident at home during their teleworking hours, or if sensitive data leaks from the employee’s personal computer?
This new niche is starting to interest the “insurance tech”. Denouncing a “Regulatory and insurance framework still almost non-existent”, Assurup launched in September “The very first telework insurance” for employers, to cover companies against financial losses that may be blamed on them in the context of teleworking. But traditional insurers have also adapted to the generalization of this way of working.
In truth, the terms of coverage for remote employees differ little from those for face-to-face or traveling employees. “Teleworking is only a modality of the organization of work”, underlines André Choquet, director of private clients at the insurance brokerage company Vespieren. Unlike self-employed workers exercising their activity at home, teleworking employees remain under the responsibility of their company. It is generally up to the employer to cover the risks associated with teleworking and to make a declaration to his insurance in order to negotiate possible extensions of guarantees.
If the employee causes an accident to a third party during teleworking hours, the situation is comparable to those of employees on the move. From the moment this accident is caused during his working hours, except in certain exceptional cases, “It is the employer’s professional liability insurance which compensates the damage caused by employees during their teleworking hours”, says Ismaël Taifouri, expert in company law at SVP, an advisory group for managers and HR functions. However, the company must notify its insurer of the teleworking of its employees.
In terms of work accidents, an employee working telework remains covered in the same way as an employee working in a company. “The accident occurring at the place where teleworking is carried out during the exercise of the professional activity of the teleworker is presumed to be a work accident within the meaning of Article L. 411-1 of the Social Security Code”, make it clear labor Code.
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