Hi, my name is Kirsten Krueger and two years ago, I was in a car accident. I was stopped at a stop sign when the driver behind me slammed into my car. Due to my injuries, I had to spend a few days in the hospital and I was unable to work for two months. My medical care was expensive and without being able to work, I couldn't pay my bills. The car accident was stressful enough and then I had to worry about how I would pay my bills. After speaking with a car accident lawyer, it wasn't long before I was compensated for my medical bills and lost wages from work. I'm writing this blog to help others who have been a car accident and haven't received any compensation. As you read my posts, you'll learn how an attorney can help you if you're in a vehicle accident.
If you've been injured at work, how much will it cost to get back to normal? Normal means more than just your general health; if your job, personal life, or property have been damaged in the same event that put you out of commission, you're entitled compensation for all of it--although you'll need to document those compensation needs one by one in some cases. Here are a few workers compensation details to help you understand what you're already entitled to, along with issues that may take a bit more effort--but they're all worth the time.
Workers Compensation Basic Benefits
The workers' compensation system exists to smooth out the recovery process for both you and your employer. Instead of creating a complex and awkward legal challenge over who pays for what bills, workers compensation covers all of your injury-related medical bills.
Workers compensation also covers a percentage of your normal pay. This percentage varies depending on the state, but it's something to keep you viable in the economy by covering life-essential costs such as food, housing, and utility bills.
There are provisions to pay a bit more than just a percentage. If a hardship exists--which happens often, as many people are barely making ends meet with their normal paycheck--you can request either a higher payment amount or assistance with bills through other programs such as Housing and Urban Development (HUD) utility coverage or grocery benefits similar to food stamps.
Increased Compensation Through Responsible Parties
The workers' compensation system is there to help workers and their employers, but there could be other parties involved that need to answer for their part in the problem.
Vendors and manufacturers are two major groups that need to be considered. Were you injury by a piece of workplace equipment, faulty construction on a job site structure, or did a piece of safety equipment critically fail? In all of these situations, you need to challenge either the selling vendor or the manufacturer.
In the case of safety equipment, part of the challenge is proving either that you were using the equipment properly to no avail, or that the product failed so severely that there was no chance it would work. Examples of critical failure include safety goggle lenses that pop out from light pressure instead or properly resisting impact and breaking into manageable pieces or the safety mechanism on a power tool that doesn't seem to stop the machine.
Contact a workers compensation attorney to discuss not only getting better benefits from your claim but taking legal challenges to additional stakeholders in your injury situation.
Share