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Five Things You Can Do to Help Your Workers’ Comp Case

Less than two years after the unemployment rate was nearly at a historic high, the rate has dropped to a near-historic low. At the same time, workers’ compensation benefits have declined significantly since 2015. So, there are more injured workers who need a fair-sized piece of a shrinking financial pie. Unfortunately, many job injury victims make it easy for a Claims Examiner to deny their claims and leave them stuck with a pile of accident-related bills.

A partnership with an Illinois workers’ comp lawyer reverses the curse. Substantial benefits are still available. These benefits include lost wage replacement and medical bill payment. However since there is less money to go around, Claims Examiners are stingier than ever. An attorney helps ensure that job injury victims get the no-fault financial benefits they need and deserve.

Provide Proper Notice of Injury

An alarming number of job injury claims never reach the review stage, because the victim does not follow the proper procedural rules. Claims Examiners deny petitions on this basis at almost every opportunity. The facts of a job injury are often unclear. But most procedural matters are clear.

For example, victims either report their injuries before the deadline or do not. The reporting requirement varies according to different policies. In most cases, victims must report their injuries to their supervisors within 10 days.

This deadline is usually 10 calendar days, not 10 working days. Additionally, the policy usually requires written notice. An email or text message might or might not satisfy this requirement.

Choose Your Own Doctor

Illinois is one of the only states that gives job injury victims the right to choose their own physician. Exercise this right.

In most other states, job injury victims must see the company doctor or choose a doctor off a company-provided list. These physicians do not always have the patient’s best interests at heart. Instead, the team doctor usually patches up the players and sends them back into the game as quickly as possible, whether or not they are fully healed.

Many of these victims are understandably afraid of the medical bills that a doctor’s care entails, especially since they usually are not working at the time. So, an Illinois workers’ comp lawyer connects these victims with top-notch doctors who charge nothing upfront for their services.

Comply With Insurance Company Procedures

We mentioned procedural hurdles in workers’ comp claims above. Other insurance company procedures often include getting a drug test and speaking with an adjuster.

Workers’ compensation benefits are no-fault benefits. Maximum benefits are available even if the victim was mostly or entirely at fault for a job-related injury. Therefore, drug use is technically irrelevant. However, it is much better to comply with this unnecessary request and keep the process moving forward.

Be careful if you speak to an insurance company adjuster. Based on this conversation, insurance company lawyers often refuse to pay certain medical bills, on the grounds that they are not reasonably necessary. So, don’t sugar coat your symptoms.

Do Not Give Up

Claims Examiners deny most job injury petitions. They hope that claimants give up and either abandon their claims or settle them for pennies on the dollar. So, do not let a denial discourage you. Denial is just part of the process.

Partner With a Rockford Workers’ Comp Lawyer

Statistically, when victims have lawyers, the average settlement amount practically goes through the roof. That is because an attorney is a good negotiator who knows when to stand firm and when to compromise during settlement talks. That is also because an attorney is a good litigator and the insurance company does not want to risk a legal confrontation.

Work With a Dedicated Winnebago County Attorney

Accident victims are usually entitled to substantial compensation. For a free consultation with an experienced workers’ comp lawyer in Rockford Illinois, contact Fisk & Monteleone, Ltd. by calling 815-315-0574. You have a limited amount of time to act.