If you have been injured while on the job, you have the right to claim workers’ compensation benefits from your employer. This is to compensate you or cover the cost of medical treatments that your require.
Your employer is also required by law to pay you income benefits while you are recovering and unable to work. Trying to figure out the workers’ compensation claim process in Spring Hill on your own can be like navigating a confusing maze.
Most employers have insurance to cover medical expenses and income benefits related to a workplace injury. However, neither your employer or their insurance carrier want to pay and will do what they can to deny your claim.
It is therefore important to get legal advice and call a lawyer as soon as possible after you have been injured at work.
Florida 360 workers’ compensation lawyers in Spring Hill are awaiting your call to assist you with the workers’ compensation claim process in Florida.
How Do I Know if My Injury is Covered By Workers’ Compensation?
Unlike most types of personal injury cases, you do not have to prove that your employer was negligent or at fault in causing your injury.
Even if you were fully or partially at fault for the incident that resulted in the injury, your employer is liable to pay workers’ compensation benefits to your.
However, the injury must fulfill the following requirements:
- The injury must have occurred in the workplace and not while you were travelling to and from work.
- The injury must have happened while you were performing duties that are in the normal scope of your job, tasks or activities.
- In some cases, workers’ compensation will be paid for injuries that occurred while travelling for work purposes such as in a business vehicle.
If you are unsure if your injury is covered by workers’ compensation, contact our workers’ compensation lawyers to evaluate your case.
How Long Do I Have to Claim Workers’ Compensation in Spring Hill, Florida?
You have 30 days from the date that you were injured to report the injury to your employer. However, it is highly recommended to report the injury as soon as possible rather than waiting. If you wait, you could lose benefits for every day that you fail to report the injury.
If you do not report the injury in time, then your employer and/or their insurance carrier has the right to deny your claim altogether.
That means that you won’t be compensated for medical care or receive any income benefits while you are recovering from your injury and are unable to work.
How Do I File a Workers’ Compensation Claim in Spring Hill?
You don’t have to actually file a workers’ compensation claim in Florida and your employer is responsible for reporting the injury within 7 days and claiming from their insurance provider. All you have to do is report the injury to your employer to get the process started.
You should receive a “First Report of Injury or Illness” soon after your employer has reported it to their insurance carrier. If the claim is approved, you should start receiving income benefits within 2 weeks of receiving the first report from the insurance carrier.
However, if your claim is denied, there is a process that you need to follow in order to appeal the decision.
Firstly, Florida requires that you make a good faith effort to resolve the issue with your employer and/or their insurance carrier and get your claim approved or reach an understanding about why your claim was denied.
It is recommended to contact Florida 360 workers’ compensation lawyers to help you resolve the dispute.
If you fail to resolve the dispute, you will need to fill out a petition that describes the nature of the incident that caused your injury, the injuries that you sustained, any treatment that your received as well as medical and income benefits that are due to you.
The petition must be filed with the Office of the Judges of Compensation Claims (OJCC) Clerk’s Office and served on your employer and/or their insurance provider.
Once again, it is recommended to have a lawyer assist you in completing, filing and serving the petition rather than doing so yourself. Even one mistake in the petition could mean that it will be dismissed and you will have to start the entire process again.
Keep in mind that you only have two years from the date that you were injured to file your petition.
Your case will then in most likelihood be sent for mediation. Mediation is a process to resolve the dispute and reach a settlement agreement between the employer and employee through a third party.
If mediation fails, your case will go to pretrial and then final trial where a decision will be reached by a Judge of Compensation Claims.
If the decision is not in your favor, you have the right to appeal via the First District Court of Appeal. You need to file your appeal within 30 days of the decision being made by the Judge ff Compensation Claims (JCC).
If you miss this deadline, the decision by the JCC will stand.
You have the right to legal representation throughout the pretrial and final trial process. You also have the right to be represented by lawyer in the First District Court of Appeal.
Contact Our Expert Lawyers Today About the Workers’ Compensation Claim Process in Spring Hill
Florida 360 workers’ compensation lawyers have the expertise to navigate the workers’ compensation claim process in Spring Hill to ensure that you receive the benefits that are due to you after being injured at work.
We know how to deal with insurance carriers and their legal team to improve your chances of getting your claim awarded.
The workers’ compensation claim process in Spring Hill can be complex and complicated. If you aren’t familiar with it, then it is more than likely that you claim will be denied.
Remember that your employer and their insurance carrier will do all that they can to avoid paying costly medical expenses and income benefits while you are unable to work.
Contact Florida Workers’ Compensation Lawyers Coalition in Spring Hill today if you are about to start the process of reporting a work-related injury or if you claim was denied for any reason.
We will help you resolve the dispute and provide you with expert legal representation throughout the mediation, pretrial, final trial and appeal processes.
