Most of the time, when workers comp lawyers in Orlando take on a new client, it’s a rather ordinary case. However, there are times when an employee suffers a very unique injury. Here, we will discuss some of the strangest workers’ compensation cases that have taken place in the United States. Once you’re done reading this article, your own workers’ compensation claim will seem rather plain.
Many people will be surprised that the people in these stories received benefits. We’ve found that these strange cases offer lessons about how the workers’ compensation system and courts judge disputed workers’ comp claims.
We suggest that you contact our Orland injury attorneys right away if you suffer a workplace injury. Usually, workers injured on the job are entitled to benefits. We offer all new clients a free, initial consultation. This gives you a chance to let an experienced workers comp lawyer in Orlando review your case and let you know if it’s worth pursuing.
A Woman Tripped Over a Dog While Working at Home and Her Workers’ Comp Claim Was Approved
Some of the trickiest cases involve employees who work from home. It can be hard for an Orlando injury attorney to prove that a remote worker was actually acting within the scope of their employment at the time of their injury. After all, most people don’t punch a clock these days. And if you’re working from home, there’s no way for your employer to how your accident took place.
For Mary Sandberg, a woman working at home for J.C. Penney, the workers’ comp system surprised many people by approving her claim. The employee was working at home and was on her way into her garage to get fabric samples for a project she was working on. She tripped on her dog and fell and broke her wrist.
She filed a workers’ compensation claim, arguing that she was on company time when the accident happened. She did win her case and receive full workers’ compensation benefits.
An Elderly Man Broke His Hip While Banging on a Vending Machine at Work
In a surprising twist in a worker’s comp case a few years ago, a 90-year-old man had felt bad for a female coworker. He went to buy her a bag of potato chips from the company’s vending machine. He thought it would cheer her up.
The chips did not fall when he put his money in so he started to bang the machine and rock up against it to free the chips. He ended up breaking his hip in the process. The courts found that the elderly man was trying to help a coworker and was, therefore, entitled to benefits.
A McDonald’s Manager Hurt Her Neck While Bending to Catch a Bag of French Fries
Many people job about jobs at fast-food restaurants by asking their friends if they would “like fries with that.” Unfortunately, for a manager of a McDonald’s fast-food restaurant, she took her job a bit too seriously. Managers and employees had been warned about wasting food or taking too long to give a customer their order at the drive-thru.
The manager tried to save a bag of fries that was falling to the floor. In trying to catch it, she ended up twisting and injuring her neck. Her claim was approved because the court found the company emphasized how important it was to not waste products.
Woman Shot and Killed While Volunteering for Firearms Training at Work
Some workers’ compensation cases, while rather weird, are still devastating. In a case at the Mississippi Gaming Commission, a group of employees was attending firearms training outside the building one day. The instructor asked for a volunteer so he could show them what to do in case an aggressive customer approached them on the job.
A woman volunteered, thinking there was nothing unsafe about the presentation. Unfortunately for her, the instructor didn’t realize that he had a live round in the chamber. When he went to shoot her while she was playing the role of the aggressor, he shot and killed her. Not surprisingly, her family was able to sue the Gaming Commission for damages.
A Woman Working for Arby’s Drank a Full Cup of Lye and Suffered Third-Degree Burns
One would think that the average person would know how to tell the difference between a cup of juice and a cup of lye. Sadly, that was not the case for Laura McCrae. McCrae worked for an Arby’s restaurant. She was on break one day and reached for what she thought was her drink.
For some reason, someone had placed a cup full of lye on the table. She drank that by mistake and ended up with third-degree burns. This was no laughing matter. However, it does help put your case in perspective.
Your Workers Comp Lawyers in Orlando Have Handled Their Own Fair Share of Strange Cases
Our Orlando injury attorneys have handled plenty of workers’ compensation cases over the years. In fact, our lawyers have decades of combined experience handling these types of cases. We have seen some crazy and strange cases over the years. We have also seen some very boring cases. Regardless of the type of case we’re handling, we do our best to get our clients the worker’s compensation benefits they deserve.
We suggest you contact our office so you can schedule your free, initial consultation. Sit down and explain what happened to one of our workers comp lawyers in Orlando. They can review whatever information you have and let you know if your case is worth pursuing. If it is, you can hire our firm without paying anything upfront.
