I was injured while doing my job. What can I do to avoid paying these medical bills myself?
It’s always a good idea to seek guidance from an experienced workers’ compensation attorney who’s familiar with your state’s laws. These professionals can evaluate your situation, provide legal advice on your rights and options, negotiate with your employer’s insurer on your behalf, and represent you in appeals court or during the mediation process. Having an experienced workers’ comp lawyer can ensure you get medical care and time off to recover as much as possible from your accident.
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What Is
Workers’ Compensation?
Workers’ compensation is a no-fault insurance system managed at the state government level that provides benefits for eligible employees who are hurt or sickened in the course and scope of their employment. However, these laws automatically exempt certain types of workers from filing claims, such as federal employees, independent contractors, and sole proprietorships.
In many cases, you won’t need an attorney to help you secure workers’ compensation benefits. But if your employer’s insurance provider denies you benefits, refuses to file a claim for your injury or you have pre-existing health conditions, it’s wise to consult a workers’ compensation lawyer for free about your case.
How Can a Workers’ Compensation Lawyer Help You?
Unfortunately, not every state requires all employers to carry workers’ compensation insurance for their employees. For this reason, always consult an attorney who specializes in workers’ compensation law if you think you have a case. Here are some things a worker’s compensation lawyer can do for you:
- Help you understand whether your employer may have violated your rights. For example: your supervisor refuses to file a claim, forces you to take an illegal drug test, or classifies you as the wrong type of employee.
- Appeal a wrongfully denied benefits claim. This is a common issue among workers with pre-existing conditions.
- Avoid missing any required reporting or paperwork deadlines. This covers accident reporting requirements for your employer and filing claim forms within your state’s statute of limitations.
- Make sure you get the right medical care and any paid time off your employer may owe you. You don’t want employers to force you to return to work before your physician says it’s safe to do so.
- Help you avoid making mistakes that could put potentially your benefits at risk. This includes preparing for a deposition, rehearsing answers to commonly asked questions at appeals hearings, or explaining what to expect during a required medical exam.
Finally, industry studies show injured workers with attorneys received significantly higher cash settlements ($7,700-$12,400 more, on average). That same research shows that a workman’s comp lawyer can get you 284% more paid days off from work.
And workers’ compensation attorneys in our network always offer free consultations to review your claim. If you choose to work with an attorney, you’ll pay $0 in legal fees unless they help you win. Since some states give you as little as 6 months to claim workers’ compensation benefits, the sooner you request a consultation, the better!
Frequently Asked Questions About Hiring a Workers’ Comp Lawyer for Your Claim
Any physical injury that you must see a doctor to treat can be a valid workers’ comp injury. This includes things like burns, cuts, bruises, muscle pain, broken bones, hearing/vision loss, and repetitive-stress injuries (such as carpal tunnel).
Your first consultation is always free. Workers’ comp lawyers charge a percentage of your final award in legal fees (usually 10%-33%). If you don’t win, then you owe $0 in legal fees.
We use your ZIP code in order to find the closest available. Then, we pass along your phone number, name, and accident details. The attorney uses that info to call you during normal business hours to complete your free workers’ comp consultation.
No. You should speak a personal injury attorney to file an assault case, since workers’ comp doesn’t cover that.
It depends. Most states require you to miss at least 3-7 shifts before you can get additional workers’ comp benefits. These are either called wage-loss benefits, or Temporary Total Disability (TTD).
In most states, yes. It depends on your state’s laws and individual employer policies.
Unfortunately, no. We have no attorneys who can accept federal workers’ comp cases.
No, you need an employment lawyer. Workers’ compensation benefits only apply to employee injuries or deaths.
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