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Workers' compensation insurance is a must for companies in the United States. It’s designed to protect employers and employees when an injury occurs in the workplace, as outlined by the state workers comp board. When an employee experiences a work-related injury, the workers' compensation benefits will come in to shelter employees from direct and indirect costs relating to the workplace injury, including medical bills, lost wages, disability payments, and rehabilitation, among others.
Even though employers have workers' compensation insurance coverage, they’re often reluctant to award workers comp benefits. There are various reasons why many employers are uncooperative in giving these awards, stemming from the likelihood of workers' compensation insurance premiums skyrocketing and protecting the company’s image. How do workers' comp claims work?
What Is the Workers' Compensation Claim Process?
The process involves awarding compensation benefits to employees following workplace injuries. It includes everything from:
Employees filing workers comp claim
Investigation of the claim by the insurance company
Awarding benefits to cater to health treatment and direct costs for post-injury rehabilitation
The injured worker will initiate the first filing process of the workers' comp claim by reporting the workplace accident and injuries sustained to their employers immediately after the accident. Injured workers must report the incident early enough to avoid the workers' compensation claim being denied since the injury diagnosis was reported late.
Next comes the appointment of the treating medical provider to the claim and investigation of the claim by the insurance adjuster. Moreover, employers are allowed to fight the comp claims during this filing process with various defense strategies.
They can claim the employee’s injury occurred out of work, and the employee was undertaking a task outside the scope of the injured worker's job description, among other reasons.
Therefore, workers injured on the job must be aware of all the steps in an injury claim. They’ll also need to report the injury as soon as possible to avoid denying the injury claim. The best way to handle such a situation is to hire a Columbus workermans compensation attorney from Larrimer & Larrimer Law Firm to increase the chances of securing compensation.
Reasons Why Employers Fight Workers Comp Claims
Employers contest workers' compensation claims to maintain and protect the company image and to discourage other employees from filing the workers' compensation claim. Here’s a complete breakdown of some of the reasons:
Protecting the Company’s Image
Employers may contest workers' comp claim to protect the reputation of their company. Bad publicity can damage a company's reputation, causing its profits to drop. Most companies fear acknowledging harm was caused and taking accountability by paying for compensation benefits can reflect a negative perception of a firm. Therefore, they may attempt to fight the claims to avoid taking responsibility and allow the incident to stick to the company’s name.
Discouraging Other Employees from Filing Workers' Compensation Claims
They contest a worker’s compensation claim to show other employees that the process is more effort than it’s worth. Long legal proceedings from workers comp claims, only to result in a case dismissal, is detrimental for other workers wishing to file a claim even for a serious injury. They’re less likely to file when they know the final outcome is zero benefits.
Keep Workers Comp Insurance Premiums Down
A worker’s compensation claim affects the premiums an employer will pay the workers' comp insurance carrier. It’s often calculated using algorithms consisting of a business experience modification (MOD). The company’s (MOD) is based on the number of comp filings that the company has made. If the value of a company’s MOD increases, it, in turn, increases the amount of workers' compensation premium employers have to pay the workers' compensation insurer.
What an Employee Needs to Do When an Employer Contests their Workers' Comp Claim
When dealing with an uncooperative employer, the injured employee must understand the steps to make filing easier. While injured victims can file the claim by themselves, it can turn out to be confusing and frustrating due to the complex nature of the legal process. Injured employees requiring medical treatment must hire reputable lawyers from Larrimer &Larrimer Law Firm to help them seek compensation and immediate treatment.
These experts believe employees deserve compensation and require quality medical care when they sustain workplace injuries. Employees shouldn’t navigate tiresome legal battles to attain what they truly deserve. They can assist employees in all things related to workers' comp claims, such as helping them understand what is impairment rating or letting them know what workers comp investigators look for.
Workers who have an uphill task filing their workers' compensation claims or wish to appeal after a denied claim should contact Larrimer & Larrimer Law Firm at (614) 820-1855 to schedule a free consultation. This will help them determine their next course of action and build an attorney-client relationship that will bear fruits in the end.
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