Filing for workers compensation can be stressful if your injury is serious and you have a lot of medical bills to pay. You want to make sure you get the most out of your claim, including receiving coverage for wages you no longer earn and any disabilities you may now have to live with. Your claim may be accepted without issue . . . or you may run into major problems that prevent you from getting proper compensation. Knowing and understanding what these obstacles are in advance can prepare you for them and help you avoid them in the first place.
You Don’t Report the Accident
The first major mistake you might make is failing to report the accident when it happens. In most workers compensation policies, your employer and their insurance company need to know about the accident and injuries as soon as possible. Failing to report could forfeit many of your benefits, even those outside of the workers compensation policy. Then not only could an employer or the insurance company deny your injury and accident, but your own health insurance may not accept any work-related claims.
Your Employer Refuses to File an Accident Report
An employer can have many motivations for refusing to file an accident report, and most of these are for the wrong reasons. They may not have the insurance they are legally required to carry, and this could be a red flag about where you work. If you run into this problem, contact your state’s workers compensation board. Every state has one, and they can guide you on what to do next so that you get coverage. Then contact a workers compensation lawyer who can protect your rights.
Insurance Refuses to Pay
The last major obstacle can come after everything else has gone smoothly: the insurance company refuses to pay your claim. When this happens, you may need to hire an attorney. The chances of an insurance company fighting you over a claim increase when there is more money involved or there are questions about the nature of the injury or accident. An attorney knows how to deal with agents and investigators in a way that protects your rights to the fullest extent.
Lawyers don’t get paid until you do, and only if you do, so there is no need to worry over the fees of hiring one. You can hire a lawyer, like one of the workers compensation attorneys from Polsky, Shouldice & Rosen, P.C., at any time while you file a claim.