Sometimes the best made plans fall apart. Just as your family was preparing to leave for a three week vacation to a quiet and relaxing beach, you received a phone call that changes everything. While you and the kids were finishing the last of the packing, your husband was at work for his final day before taking a much needed break. When the house phone rang, you paused for a moment. For the most part, all of the calls that your family received came on the cell phones. It was rare for the home phone to get any calls other than telemarketers or election pollsters.
On this occasion, however, you answered the phone instead of just letting one of the kids get it or having the call go to the answering machine. As soon as your husband’s boss greeted you a feeling of dread took over your entire body. HE calmly explained that there had been an accident at work and that your husband had been taken by ambulance to the closest hospital. Your husband’s boss said that he could pick you up at your house or drive you, but either way he wanted to accompany you to see your husband.
Luckily, the injuries that your husband sustained were not life threatening. They were, however, serious. Two broken bones, internal bruising, and several deep lacerations mean that he would need to be monitored for a couple of days. He would be off work for at least a month. The vacation trip your family had nearly completed packing for was cancelled.
Workers Compensation Attorneys Assist Families in Time of Need
Any time an accident at work occurs the offers of support and care are overwhelming. In reality, however, the words of comfort offered by supervisors and human resources personnel do not pay the medical bills and meet the financial obligations that a family has. And while many company’s are required to carry workers compensation, the fact of the matter is the company and their representatives are looking out for the interest of the company more than the worker. In almost all cases, contacting a team of workers compensation attorneys is in the best interest of the injured party.
According to some of the latest labor statistics, private industry employers reported as many as 3 million nonfatal workplace injuries and illnesses in the year 2013. Fortunately, this number represents a slight decrease in the incidence rate reported in 2012. The number of worker injuries dropped from 3.4 in out of 100 full time workers in 2012 to 3.3 in 2013. For the injured workers and their families, however, the decrease means very little. They are still the ones dealing with loss of income and a likely increase in medical and other expenses.
Workers compensation attorneys help the families of injured employees navigate the complicated process of filing for claims. Additionally, workers compensation attorneys can help families anticipate future costs and future expenses, as well as future income losses, of employees who have been injured on the job. A detailed and exact process is required when any one makes a workers compensation claim. Attorneys are more likely to understand the necessary and required deadlines that need to be met. For example, workers compensation pays 100% of medical costs for workers injured on the job. It also pays cash benefits for lost work time, but these payments do not begin until after a three to seven day waiting period. Injured parties who fail to file the required paper work may find themselves waiting longer than necessary for their benefits.
Workers Compensation Claims Require Attention to Detail
In the year 2011, state and federal workers compensation laws covered approximately 125.8 million employees. Benefit payments during this same year totaled $60.2 billion. This amount was a 3.4% increase from the revised 2010 benefit figure of $58.2 billion. for every single one of these claims, the injured party needed to file the necessary paperwork in order to receive the benefits. Simply relying a advice from an employer’s human resources department can lead to delays. In most cases, workers who contact and work with their own workers compensation attorneys will receive more timely benefits. These attorneys are also able to help predict other future needs.
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