Most people assume that if anything goes wrong while they are working, they will receive all the assistance they need. This is because almost every employer is legally required to provide accident insurance for their staff, to help them if they become injured. The benefits include compensation for disfigurement, physical impairment, or permanent disability. The most used provisions relate to partially covering lost wages and paying for medical treatment and medication.
Your Workers’ Compensation Case With These 6 Useful Tips
It may be that you have just been involved in a work-related accident. Perhaps you have already filed your workers’ compensation claim and your boss’s insurance company is currently reviewing it. There may seem to be an ominous silence or delay, or a sensed reluctance to payout. This article provides six tips for winning your claim for workers’ compensation.
Employ an Attorney
By doing this, you can harness the knowledge and expertise of a professional. They can tell you what your rights are and the benefits you should be claiming. Not only will they help you file a Form 50 with the Workers’ Compensation Commission, but they will be amassing the evidence. This includes the medical documentation, scene investigation, and witness statements.
There are many lawyers who offer their services online. You can learn a lot about a workers comp attorney from their web pages, including their awards, certifications, and client testimonials. They often disclose details of the money they have recovered from successful claims and provide helpful free articles on form completion.
Submit a Report Immediately
Your superior needs to be quickly advised that an accident has occurred. Adrenaline can mask pain and even if you feel fine, medical symptoms could manifest later on. For this reason, it’s paramount that the company accident records are updated to note what has happened. If you report the accident several weeks later, they could claim you were injured after the work incident.
When you submit your report you will set the ball rolling for an inquiry to be made into the event. There should be an assessment of the accident location and the collection of witness statements. Both these things could prove crucial to winning the case.
Put Your Health First
The most important thing is that you get medically assessed and treated if required. The doctor’s report would then become part of your compensation claim. A supervisor or manager may seek to dissuade you from doing anything after the accident. This could be because they need you to keep working or because they are trying to protect themselves legally. If you don’t see a doctor or go to a hospital immediately, your medical reports will be less conclusive in terms of supporting your claim.
Needless to say, you will want your medical bills to be fully compensated. For this reason, you need to visit medical professionals who are Workers’ Compensation certified.
Tell Your Doctor How the Incident Occurred
Your primary concern may be to tell the medical professional where you hurt, so you can be quickly diagnosed and treated. Whilst this is totally understandable it is vital that they know what you were doing and where.
When the doctor fully understands your working activities it will provide them with helpful background information for assessing you and for completing the medical report.
Don’t Delay in Submitting Your Claim
The statute of limitations relates to how long you have in order to do this. The timescale may vary from state to state, but if you are too late there may be nothing you can do – even if you are experiencing major medical issues. The sooner you submit the claim the sooner there will be a settlement, and the more chance you will have of winning.
Let Your Attorney Deal With the Insurance Companies
This is one of the things you are paying them for, and it can protect you from stress during a time of medical rehabilitation. Your employer’s insurance company will be thinking of their interests, not yours, even if they are clever how they word it.
They will want to find ways of getting out of paying – or to pay less – and this may involve getting you to say things that could compromise your claim. In contrast, your attorney will be familiar with their tactics and be best placed to negotiate a fair settlement.
If these six tips are put into practice they will put you in a strong position to gain justice. Hopefully, you will be fairly compensated and able to fully recover your health. You can then concentrate on living your life to the full once more.