Occupational accident after drinking coffee

After a morning meeting, a construction worker took a sip of his coffee and choked. As he was leaving the construction container to cough, his blacked out. He collapsed, fell face-first onto a metal grating and broke his nose. The Saxony-Anhalt Higher Social Court recently ruled that this was an accident at work.

In the first instance, the defendant’s professional liability insurance association argued that the incident had not served any operational purpose and denied that it was a work accident covered by statutory insurance. The plaintiff countered that drinking coffee together during the meeting was for business purposes and did not serve the basic need to quench his thirst. Nevertheless, the Magdeburg Social Court ruled against him and refused insurance cover. As a rule, eating and therefore drinking are considered as personal activities that are not covered by insurance. Nor was it considered a mixed activity.

Drinking coffee was an integral part of the purely business meeting

In the second instance, the Saxony-Anhalt Higher Social Court finally ruled that it was a work-related accident. It stated that drinking coffee served a business purpose and was an integral part of a work-related meeting. The fall onto the metal grate caused by swallowing was to be considered the immediate case of the accident and the main cause of the injury.

Furthermore, the fact that the coffee break did not just take place as an occasional, purely private activity during a breakfast break, but rather as part of a meeting that the participants were obliged to attend, also supports the conclusion that it was work-related. The court also took into account the plaintiff’s avoidance behaviour, who covered his mouth with his hand when he choked and wanted to leave the room. This indicates a motivation that is conducive to the working atmosphere.