This time of year, I get a lot of calls from workers who have been unfairly denied Workers Compensation benefits. Some of the illegal excuses that the employers or the insurers use are:
- The injury was not reported on time. FALSE. You are required to report your injury when you have lost time from work or sought medical treatment AND you know that your injury is work-related. Most workers try to shake off their work injuries and don't want to complain about every little scratch and strain. So its reasonable that they would wait until the injury does not resolve to go see the doctor. If you report the injury after you saw the doctor, then you reported it timely. And if your boss or supervisor was aware you were hurt, then you reported it timely.
- You didn't fill out a report of injury. FALSE. It's the employer's responsibility to fill out the report of injury and to file it with the board.
- Your work injury is an aggravation of a preexisting condition (which never bothered you before). FALSE. When a work injury accelerates, aggravates or combines with a preexisting injury to cause a disability or need for medical treatment, it is still a workers compensation injury.
Workers Compensation law is complicated. If you have been denied benefits, for whatever reason, you need to speak to an attorney.
The Law Office of Keenan Powell provides FREE consultations regardless of whether or not you have been controverted. To contact Keenan Powell, use the contact form found on the website, www.keenanpowell.com or call 258-7663.
For more information about Workers Compensation, see: http://www.keenanpowell.com/faq‑wc.html.