Workers compensation is a federally required insurance program that often works well for both employees and employers. There are many workplace injuries that occur on the job with little claim defense available for employers. These injuries are typically documented by an accident report or time stamped medical billing with a definitive diagnosis from medical treatment professionals. Employers designate these injured employees as workers compensation insurance beneficiaries when there is no other suitable work they can perform in avoiding a claim filing.
The respondent workers comp insurance company can also conduct an investigation into the matter and rule on benefits protection from their standpoint. While being reassigned job responsibilities is not always best for the employee, this does occur regularly when the employer could be in a position of liability for additional general damages or they just do not want to file a claim if avoidable.
Regardless of case details, it is always best to consult with a compensation attorney from a reputable law firm for advice on handling the injury claim even if it will be necessary to wait some time for a workers comp settlement.
How Long Does It Take to Get a Workers Compensation Check?
It takes between several weeks and two years to get a workers’ compensation check. In cases where there are no disputes, you should have a check as soon as the insurance company can process the payment. A complex case can take as long as two years. Continue reading to know why these times vary wildly.
Standard Workers Comp Claims
Standard claims by law require employers to conduct an investigation into how the injury occurred before submitting a claim to the state board and their insurance company. Injured employees must be unable to work for more than seven consecutive days for benefit eligibility. Replacement wages are paid by the insurance company after the seven-day period at a designated pay rate in accordance with state law.
Payments are retroactive to the date of the injury and should continue until the injured employee can return to work. However, insurance companies can also deny the claim when they think they have a defense, which can often mean either disrupted wage replacement payments or even a refusal to pay any benefits entirely.
Valid standard claims that have been denied by the benefit carrier can still be filed with the governing state agency by a workers comp attorney, and some cases where employers have not been compliant with OSHA regulations could even result in a state court injury filing where long-term general damages for pain-and-suffering could be available when negligence can be proven in court.
Workers Compensation Case Denials
There are many workplace injury cases that result from denied claims by an employer or an insurance carrier. Some employers are actually difficult as a matter of company policy when facing a potential workplace injury claim filing, and especially in employment fields such as the construction industry where independent specialist contractors are very common.
Some states do allow for employer exemption from carrying workplace injury coverage if they have minimal employees, but most states will only exempt the owner. However, claims can still be filed with the state board even when an employer refuses to file the injury, and the employer could also still be held personally liable in certain situations.
Depending on the nature of the injury and case details, employers can even claim the injury did not occur at work or the injury is not as serious as stated. It takes medical documentation for validating any workers comp injury case, and employers can be difficult in situations where they could also be found negligent with extended liability. Slow walking claims and total denials can indeed affect the amount of time it takes to finally be compensated for injuries.
These are cases requiring aggressive legal representation by a dedicated law firm that is meticulous in pursuing benefits, and especially when extended damages could be available.
Lawsuit Injury Cases
Everyone is well aware of how slow the wheels of justice turn in any personal injury court case. Many injured workers who are completely denied any insurance protection at first are actually left with no choice but to file a case in court or with the governing state agency. All states are required to maintain a workplace injury oversight commission that handles standard workplace injuries, and attorneys can still file cases in standard state court when there is provable negligence.
Workplace injury coverage is essentially a no-fault system for the most part in standard uncontested cases. While cases handled through the state employment injury claim system allow employer exemptions from long-term general damages payment, cases that are filed outside the workers compensation court system and based on employer negligence can result in significant general damage awards when injuries present serious ongoing living problems for the claimant.
Punitive damages could also be in line in certain situations when gross negligence by the employer can be proven in a trial. These cases all take considerable time to complete through the court system, and the lawsuit filing is often actually just the beginning of the settlement process.
Intentional Workers Comp Settlement Procrastination
The most problematic cases for injured employees regarding a settlement check are when insurance companies are purposely refusing to pay a claim based on whatever reason they can establish. Insurance companies are in business for profit, and claims adjusters are primarily responsible to their client. They are only responsible to the claimant to the extent of the insurance policy provisions, and they can be especially vigorous in denying a claim when injuries are serious.
These egregious cases can also result in additional bad faith lawsuits against the insurance carrier under certain conditions when negotiating tactics can be proven as such in court by a workers compensation attorney. Even though this can further delay claim payment, it can also provide additional financial recovery awards for those with serious ongoing medical issues.
Studies have shown that workplace injury case determinations can vary widely with respect to time, as each case is unique in certain aspects. There are some cases that can be settled in less than six months when coverage is obvious, and there are other contested cases that can take significantly longer for an equitable settlement check to be delivered. In the most difficult cases, two years is not unusual.
And, insurance providers can still use procrastination as a tool to encourage a claimant to accept a standing low-ball offer based on sheer financial hardship even though delay can be construed by the court as a bad faith negotiation tactic. The real issue is the fact that there is only one opportunity for economic justice when a workplace injury occurs, and the attorney that is chosen can make a major difference in both the amount of time it takes to at least begin benefits as well as the total amount of benefits paid in an equitable workers comp settlement check.
Get in touch with us if you have a possible case and questions.