Every worker is entitled to feel healthy, safe, and protected in the workplace, but what if you find yourself falling ill? Or have you suffered an injury in the workplace? You might find that you cannot work due to an injury or occupational illness, putting a significant financial strain on you and your loved ones.
If you’ve suffered an occupational illness or work-related injury, it’s easy to feel lost and overwhelmed. Our Stockbridge workers’ compensation lawyers at the Workers’ Compensation Lawyers Coalition can help you understand your rights and access your full benefits to get your life back on track.
We understand that workers’ compensation is about delivering the financial support and the services you need after a work-related injury and doing it fairly and promptly. That means prompt recovery of medical and indemnity benefits. That’s why we take a personalized, holistic, and strategic approach when handling workers’ compensation cases – one that doesn’t just focus on short-term benefits but gets you the full benefits you are owed.
It’s by doing this – and utilizing our resources and years of experience – that we help injured workers in Stockbridge and throughout Georgia to recover workers’ comp benefits in a seamless and timely manner. Our specialized Stockbridge workers’ compensation attorneys are ready when you are!
Call the Workers’ Compensation Lawyers Coalition at 470-518-5026 to get your free initial legal consultation.
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What Is Workers Compensation?
Workers’ compensation is a statutory insurance system for all employers in every state, including Georgia. It protects workers in the event they suffer a work-related disease or injury. If you suffer a workplace injury or illness, the workers’ compensation program may provide you with payments to cover your lost wages while you’re not fit to return to work and medical expenses.
In Georgia, the workers’ compensation system is designed to support injured workers, including assistance with recovery and returning to work wherever possible. The recovery of workers’ compensation benefits can help ease the physical, psychological, and economic stress if you cannot work for a short or long period and any permanent suffering you may experience.
What to Do If You Suffer a Work-Related Injury
When you suffer a workplace injury or discover a chronic occupational illness, it is essential that you take the proper steps to secure your safety as well as your legal rights. Making a workers’ compensation claim, especially after a catastrophic work-related injury, can be daunting, especially when you’re most vulnerable. Here, we will provide the 5 immediate steps you must take after a workplace accident.
Get Medical Care as Soon as You Can
The first and foremost important thing to do after a workplace accident is assessing and treating resulting injuries. Even if your injury seems minor, you should get medical care, and a doctor should diagnose and treat your injuries before you can attempt to return to work.
Tell Your Employer You Are Hurt
You must inform your direct supervisor or employer of the accident as soon as possible. You must report a work injury in Georgia within 30 days, or you risk losing out on benefits.
Keep a Record
Identify and record all relevant details there and then. If you’re physically capable, make sure you record every significant aspect of the accident and your injury, including time and place. It would be best if you also took pictures of your injuries and the potential cause of the accident. Don’t rely on your boss to record these incidents; instead, write your personal account of the accident as soon as you can and take photos to preserve evidence.
File a Workers’ Compensation Claim
File a workers’ compensation claim with the help of a reputable workers’ compensation attorney. Remember that your employer must report workplace accidents to their workers’ comp insurance carriers, who will appoint their panel of attorneys to represent their interests. So why leave yourself at a disadvantage? A workers’ compensation lawyer can help you file your claim and advise you on immediate action to take to strengthen your claim long-term.
Rest and Recuperate
Resting and following the doctor’s instructions promotes recovery. Focus on what you can do to boost recovery rather than what you cannot. Our Stockbridge workers’ compensation lawyers will take care of everything else, including completing your formal accident report.
If you’ve sustained severe injuries, you may not feel capable of attending to the steps listed above. If you cannot do so, don’t worry, you can ask a colleague, a friend, or a loved one to assist you. These immediate steps are crucial and will affect your Stockbridge workers’ compensation claim in the long term.
What Are the Most Common Workplace Accident Injuries?
Workplace accidents, injuries, and occupational diseases are usually thought to be common in more dangerous and physically demanding industries; however, they can happen in any setting. Common on-the-job injuries include:
- Burns
- Broken bones
- Amputations
- Hearing Loss
- Neck and back injuries
- Construction accidents
- Slip and fall
- Road accidents while traveling for business
- Workplace violence
- Accidents while working using tools and operating machinery
Why Should I Hire a Stockbridge Workers’ Compensation Lawyer?
Engaging a skilled and experienced Stockbridge workers’ compensation lawyer is the best way to ensure you get the benefits you deserve. Your lawyer can look at the full details of your situation and the incident and guide you through the complicated process of claiming benefits after a work-related injury or illness.
At the Workers’ Compensation Lawyers Coalition, we understand that filing a workers’ comp claim can be potentially life-changing and a daunting experience, and to do so successfully requires a thorough understanding of Georgia’s workers’ comp law, your legal rights and benefits, and the dedication to actively pursue the case.
Things our legal team in Stockbridge may be able to help you include, but are but not limited to:
- Gathering crucial evidence to show the cause and severity of your injuries
- Reporting your workplace accident
- Submitting your workers’ comp claim
- Any disputes that may arise
- Settlement negotiations
- Appealing a denied claim
- Pursuing a third-party personal injury claim
How Much Do Stockbridge Workers’ Compensation Attorneys Charge?
For workers’ comp claims in Stockbridge, GA, there are no upfront or out-of-pocket costs to injured workers. Suppose you are eligible to make a statutory claim for workers’ compensation benefits. In that case, we take your case on a contingency fee basis (usually not more than 25% of your recovered benefits), and you can only pay if your case is successful.
We suggest speaking with our Stockbridge workers’ compensation lawyers to understand how this payment process works during your initial free consultation.
What Should I Do If My Workers’ Compensation Claim Is Denied?
Workers’ compensation benefits offer invaluable financial support for workers who become ill or are injured in the course of their employment. When everything works out as it should, you receive the money you need to cover medical costs and rehabilitation services, if necessary. Unfortunately, not every worker’s claim is approved, and genuine compensation claims are often spuriously denied.
So what can you do?
- Ask for a review, i.e., ask your employer’s workers’ compensation insurance carrier to reconsider their decision
- Seek help from the State Board Of Workers’ Compensation
- Appeal a workers’ comp denial in the court system and fight for your benefits in a hearing before an administrative law judge
Don’t give up! Contact a specialist Stockbridge workers’ compensation attorney. At any point during your claim, a workers’ comp lawyer can step in and assist with your case, including appealing a denied claim.
What Are the Employer’s Responsibilities in Workers’ Compensation?
Georgia’s workers’ comp laws establish basic responsibilities for employers. These include:
- Post a notice that they comply with Georgia’s workers’ comp laws
- Reporting the employee’s injury
- Post a notice of all authorized medical providers
- Cooperating with investigating parties, including the State Board of Workers’ Compensation
- Facilitate the employee’s return to work
What Are Employee Responsibilities in the Workers’ Comp Process?
Under Georgia law, injured employees have the following responsibilities.
- Seek and accept reasonable medical care and treatment and follow the doctor’s instructions
- Report the accident right away or within 30 days after the injury to your direct supervisor or employer
- Attempt to take on a job recommended by the authorized treating medical provider, even if the earnings are lower than before you were hurt
- Be honest and cooperative
- File a workers’ claim within 1 year after the last authorized medical care and treatment date or within 2 years of your last payment of weekly entitlements if you believe you are eligible for income benefits but your employer’s insurance carrier denies these benefits.
- Submit a request for compensation for mileage or travel costs related to medical care within 1 year of the expense date.
Can I Be Fired For Claiming Workers’ Comp Benefits?
No. Your employer cannot exact any form of retaliation on you simply because you have made a workers’ compensation claim. After all, what you have done is seek to establish your legal rights; and claiming benefits and compensation for work-related injuries is a legal right!
Is There a Time Limit to File a Workers’ Comp Claim in Stockbridge, GA?
Yes. In Georgia, injured workers have 1 year within which to file a workers’ compensation claim. If you fail to issue legal proceedings within that time, your Stockbridge workers’ compensation claim becomes statute-barred.
Due to the strict time limits associated with making a workers’ comp claim in Georgia, we recommend you act quickly and seek expert legal assistance as soon as possible to make sure you recover all the benefits you are owed.
Can I Sue My Employer?
No. Employees cannot sue employers for occupational diseases or work-related injuries. Instead, workers who fall ill or get hurt on the job can seek and recover benefits and compensation through the workers’ compensation legislation in Georgia.
Can Independent Contractors Get Workers Comp Benefits?
No. Independent contractors and subcontractors do not receive workers’ compensation benefits in Georgia.
What Is My Stockbridge Workers’ Compensation Claim Worth?
Following a work-related illness or injury, it can be hard to know to what extent your injuries will impact your life. It can feel like the world has been turned upside down. If you are hurt at work or because of your work, you can recover benefits in the form of weekly payments for medical expenses. Workers’ compensation may pay for:
- Your medical bills (with authorized treating physicians)
- A percentage of your lost earnings
- Rehabilitation expenses
- Travel expenses related to the care and treatment of your injury
- Permanent disability benefits
Call Our Stockbridge Workers’ Compensation Lawyers
The experienced Stockbridge workers compensation attorneys at the Workers’ Compensation Lawyer Coalition handle various work-related injuries and accidents. Rest assured that we are familiar with the Georgia Workers Compensation Act and all other relevant Georgia workers’ comp laws and will handle your case with the utmost dedication and care.
Get in touch with our expert workers’ compensation lawyer in Stockbridge at 470-518-5026 for a free analysis of your case.
