The state of Colorado makes it mandatory for employers to carry workers’ compensation insurance if they have one or more employees. This allows employees that get hurt or sustain an injury on work premises or while doing their work to claim that insurance. This workers’ compensation serves as a protection for the employer as well, who can not be sued for a personal injury claim by the injured employee if they claim workers’ compensation.
If you’ve been injured while doing your job or sustained an injury on your employers’ premises due to someone else’s negligence, then you are eligible for workers’ compensation and you can claim it. Before you go ahead and do this, you must be wondering about the comp benefits and the actual worth of the compensation.
Let us walk you through the process of claiming your workers’ compensation and establish its worth.
Workers’ compensation is not just limited to major accidents. Even employees that are injured on work premises or are exposed to harmful toxins and substances over time that ends in them developing long-term conditions like cancer. Even an employee that sustains regular stress injuries can claim workers’ compensation.
Any employee that has been injured at the workplace or while performing their occupational duties should contact an experienced workers’ compensation lawyer.
When you get injured during your scope of work or due to activity at your workplace. These injuries will be covered by your Colorado workers’ comp benefits. Workplace injuries can lead to short-term and long-term effects that may affect your ability to do your work and continue your job. Some of these include:
There are some rules that exempt your ability to claim workers comp reduce your compensation amount even if the injury happened while working or due to work. These include but are not limited to:
If you’ve been in a workplace accident, you need to take the following steps immediately to build the foundation of a strong workers’ compensation claim.
You need to report the accident and the extent of your injury to your employer immediately. If you fail to do this, your claim may be affected. The rule of thumb is to inform your employer within 4 days of the accident. Make sure all this communication is properly documented.
You may have sustained catastrophic injuries as a result of the action, so your first course of action should be to always seek medical care for your injuries. Call 911 or walk straight into the emergency room. An official medical record will also help back up your claim.
Keep a full record of your medical bills and other expenses like physical therapy that you’ve incurred due to work-related injury. This includes your lost wages and even the mileage to and from your doctor’s office.
We will always suggest you stay away from insurance fraud as that can get you into big trouble. The insurance company will do a full investigation and see if there is even an indication of fraud. Your activities online will also be monitored, so it’s best you be straight up and honest with your doctor and your employer.
It’s best to let the personal injury lawyer handle the claim and the deadlines. Also, an experienced worker's compensation attorney will be able to handle the insurance company’s tactics much better than you.
The type of benefit you can get from a workers’ compensation depends on your unique case and the injuries you sustained as a result of the accident. These may include:
The workers’ comp insurance carrier will cover all your medical costs through an authorized treating physician or ATP chosen by the insurance carrier.
You can get up to two-thirds of your previous wages up to a specified amount. This specified amount limit is adjusted annually.
Let’s say you get injured to a point that you can no longer do the same job as you were doing. However, you are able to secure another job. This kind of benefit is applicable in such cases. The compensation amount you receive will depend on your permanent impairment rating.
If you’re injured or ill to a point where you can not continue your current job or any other job. You are eligible for PTD benefits. These include two-thirds of your previous weekly wages for the rest of your life. There is also a specified limit for this amount and that limit is adjusted on an annual basis.
These are compensated to the worker that is working for a limited time or part-time during the recovery period after sustaining an injury at work.
These are usually given to the worker that is unable to work during the recovery time after they’ve sustained an injury at work.
The injured worker has the choice of receiving the payment in a lump-sum settlement or in the form of monthly or interval-based payments. Your experienced attorney will walk you through the available options and help you determine the best path for your compensation settlements.
The amount can range from anywhere between $20,000 to $40,000 depending on the extent of the workers’ injuries. Now, this may seem like a very big range, but this range accommodates the different kinds of accidents and injuries a worker can sustain during work.
The majority of employees that make the effort to fill in the form get a workers’ comp payout. An employee can also negotiate the compensation offer and, usually, this will lead to a higher payout. Even just starting the negotiation process can prompt the insurance company to up their offer.
The state of Colorado has two years of statute of limitations for workers’ compensation. This means that you have a time frame of two years to file a claim from the exact date of the accident or injury. There are some special circumstances in which this can be extended to three years. However, if you do not file within this period of time, you are unlikely to get compensation.
It is best you engage a workers’ compensation lawyer as soon as possible so they can determine the best course of action for you and get you the best settlement whether it is monthly or weekly payments or a lump-sum payment.
Firouzbakht Law firm understands that workplace injuries can put your normal life on hold and you may need compensation to get through recovery and the mental and physical damage caused by the injury. You also need to pay for the medical treatments to help you recover from these injuries.
We believe in assessing your case and giving you the best legal representation to get your settlement through the workers’ compensation law in Colorado.. We have the best team of personal injury attorneys in Denver, Colorado. Our professional comp lawyer will work around the clock and follow the comp process to get you the compensation you deserve for your pain and suffering.
Need help with your workers’ compensation? Call us now.