Filing a claim with your employer’s insurer can be a confusing procedure. You will need to include all the details of your injury and the nature of how it occurred.
Work accidents can cause temporary disability and long-term problems. About 3.4 workers’ compensation claims are filed for every 100 full-time workers. Serious personal injuries due to illness or accidents while working on the clock can prevent employees from continuing their normal productivity. When this happens to you, you are due workers’ compensation to help you recover while you are unable to work. After a bad accident, you should take immediate action to make sure you receive compensation.
Medical Help
As soon as you are injured, you should get medical help to prevent your injuries from getting worse. There may be an emergency medical kit on-site that you can be treated with. However, afterward, you will have to go to a hospital or clinic. Typically, your employer will send you to a hospital of their choice, and after that, you can continue your treatments at your normal doctor.
Notify Management
After you were injured, you should let your employer know as soon as possible. Your employer typically has a system in place for workplace injuries and can expedite the process by letting their workplace compensation insurer know of your damages. After they are aware of your wounds, they will likely provide you with the paperwork to begin your claim.
Workplace Accident Form
Your employer will give you a form that you must complete within 14 days. The workplace accident form should be filled out as soon as possible after you have been injured. This helps you provide information that is still fresh in your mind because it is soon after the injury happened. Also, this lets the employer investigate your accident in a timely fashion. It is easier to prove you were injured on the job when you submit the form on time, and it will be harder to claim that any other event led to your injury.
File a Claim
You will need to file a claim providing all the information about your accident to obtain compensation from your employer’s insurer. It is recommended that you review all of the information more than once to make sure there are no errors. It can slow down the processing of your paperwork when the information is inaccurate and the Department of Labor and Workforce Development has to contact you for corrections. You have to file your claim within two years from the date your accident happened. After two years, your workers’ compensation claim can be denied.
Speak with an Attorney
It is important that you speak with an attorney after you file your claim to help you get through the process more smoothly. Workers’ compensation attorneys can help prevent you from making common applicant mistakes that happen to most injured workers. Also, if your workers’ compensation claim comes out to be far too small or is denied, your attorney can take a look at your application and identify what the issue is. According to Newark personal injury attorneys Goldstein & Goldstein, if there are any errors your attorney can rework your claim and give you a better chance of receiving the full claim amount to cover your damages.
Next Steps for Filing Your Workers’ Compensation Claim
Filing a claim with your employer’s insurer can be a confusing procedure. You will need to include all the details of your injury and the nature of how it occurred. Speaking with an attorney can help clarify the application process.
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