Time spent travelling to and from first and last appointments of the day should count as working time, the European Court of Justice has ruled.

The Luxembourg-based court declared that workers without a fixed office or workplace are “carrying out their activity or duties over the whole duration of those journeys”.

Trade unions believe the judgment, which takes effect immediately, could be a big boost for tens of thousands of low-paid home care workers whose costs for commuting to their clients’ homes are not covered.

British business leaders said the UK government will have to come up with a strong definition of what a ‘normal workplace’ can be.

The ruling said: “The court takes the view that the workers are at the employer’s disposal for the time of the journeys. During those journeys, the workers act on the instructions of the employer, who may change the order of the customers or cancel or add an appointment.

“During the necessary travelling time – which generally cannot be shortened – the workers are therefore not able to use their time freely and pursue their own interests.”

Anyone who has to commute to these jobs is also considered to be working during these journeys, the court ruled. It stated: “Given that travelling is an integral part of being such a worker, the place of work of that worker cannot be reduced to the physical areas of his work on the premises of the employer’s customers.

“The fact that the workers begin and finish the journeys at their homes stems directly from the decision of their employer to abolish the regional offices and not from the desire of the workers themselves.”

The ruling came about because of an ongoing legal case in Spain involving a company called Tyco, which installs security systems.