There is a decent amount of traffic on the street that my family and l live on, and we see Amazon vehicles at all hours of the day. Some are those bluish-gray trucks that are easily recognized, while others are the personal vehicles of Amazon Flex drivers.
Being an Amazon Flex driver sounds like a pretty good gig. Flex drivers are in charge of their schedule and find available delivery blocks that work for them. They drive to the designated Amazon location to pick up the packages and then make the deliveries. Sounds simple, right?
Well, accidents happen, and Flex drivers are no exception, unfortunately. Amazon Flex drivers are part of the gig economy and Amazon tries to classify them as independent contractors as they get to set their own schedule. It’s arguable that Amazon has some control over these workers as far as telling them where to go, sometimes providing an Amazon uniform, or even bringing them on to the equivalent of a full-time worker.
The more control Amazon (or any other company) has over someone, the more likely it is that they are in fact an employee and not an independent contractor. This is true even if you signed a contract that says otherwise. And as most people know, Amazon isn’t a great company when it comes to looking out for their workers. So you can’t and shouldn’t trust them if they tell you that you can’t bring a work comp claim if you get injured while making deliveries.
And of course, there are a lot of injuries. Some of these include:
• Injured in a car accident. A vehicle collided with theirs.
• Hit while off the truck as a “pedestrian.” A person in a vehicle or on a bike or scooter hits them while they are off the truck delivering a package.
• Suffered an injury from lifting and carrying packages.
• Slipped and fell while making deliveries.
• Suffered a traumatic or repetitive injury caused by getting in and out of the vehicle.
• Stumbled on stairs or got caught on a gate or fence at an Amazon customer’s property.
• Bitten by a dog or cat while dropping off a package.
The circumstances may vary, and the type of injury may vary. One Flex driver might have a slipped disc in her back, while another may need surgery on his pelvis. But what these cases have in common is that the injuries were incurred while the Flex driver was working for Amazon.
Many of these drivers also have the potential for a second case, which would be a lawsuit against the party that was negligent in causing their injury.
What we can do and will do for free is talk to you about what happened and help you figure out if you have one case, two cases, or none at all. We have been helping injured workers since 1997 and would be happy to discuss your case with you at any time. Call us at 312-346-5578 to speak with an attorney or fill out our contact form and we will contact you. Via our state-wide network of experienced attorneys, we can help you anywhere in Illinois.
