Filing for Workers’ Comp? Here’s What You Need To Do

Are you filing for workers’ comp? Here’s what you need to do: read this educational article, then contact our Buffalo lawyers to get started.

What You Need to Know About Workers’ Comp

• A general overview of workers’ comp would be: it pays a percentage of wages as long the disability lasts, covers all medical treatment related to the accident, (including mileage to and from the doctor), and it pays a specified amount for permanent injuries to certain body parts once you reach your best possible recovery level – referred to as reaching maximum medical improvement.
• We obtain opinions for the scheduled loss of use for the affected body part, which corresponds with a dollar amount which is reduced by the amount of benefits previously paid.
• You receive a lump sum scheduled loss award, and are still protected for treatment necessitated by your accident.
• That’s basically what workers’ comp is. It doesn’t pay for pain and suffering or punitive damages.

Report Your Injury

• If you get hurt at work, always report the injury to your employer as quickly as possible.
• Every workplace is different, but the best approach is to immediately give the employer written notice.
• That notice satisfies only the notice requirement. It does not satisfy the claim filing requirement which requires that a C-3 form be filed with the workers compensation board. Proper filing of your claim is best handled by a workers compensation lawyer, who will complete that C-3 form and get it filed.
• If you’re hurt at work, seek medical treatment. Tell the doctor you were injured at work. The doctor will file a report with the insurance carrier and the workers compensation board, which gets the case up and running.

Who To Sue

• A person who is injured at work cannot sue their employer; but may be able to sue a third party.
• For example, if a truck driver who is driving their truck for work is struck and injured by another vehicle, they have a workers compensation case for their injuries as well as grounds for a potential lawsuit against the other driver and the other vehicle’s owner.
• You cannot sue your employer for work-related injuries because that’s the purpose of workers compensation.

Paid Medical Bills

• Generally, the workers compensation carrier pays for all medical treatment related to injuries caused by a work-related accident or disease.
• The workers compensation board works through medical treatment guidelines that set forth covered treatments .
• If your doctor wants to prescribe treatment not addressed in those guidelines, he must apply for a variance to those guidelines using an MG-2 form which explains why the treatment is needed.

Attending Your Workers’ Comp Hearing

• When clients ask whether they need to attend hearings, we tell them that we prefer that our clients attend their hearings to see for themselves what the judge is considering when it comes to their claim.
• We also want them to observe the process first-hand.
• If you’re working or simply cannot go to the hearing, we will take care of it; however, in most cases, we would rather have you at the hearing.

Download Our Free Workers’ Compensation Guide