Workers’ comp is a type of insurance. As such, it is subject to the decisions of the insurer. We all know that insurance companies avoid paying out benefits whenever possible. Doing so is simply a part of their business model.
These companies have many tricks they use to deny compensation. They can claim that your injury isn’t severe enough to warrant benefits. Companies might also use loopholes, claiming your injury wasn’t job-related. This is an easy way for them to deny compensation for work-from-home injuries.
Any little mistake on your application can allow an insurance company to deny your benefits. Here are some common mistakes many employees make on their workers’ compensation forms.
Filing Your Claim Before Reporting Your Injuries
Whenever you are injured at work, you should report the incident to your employer as soon as possible. Afterward, you file for your workers’ comp benefits. Your employer pays for your workers’ comp benefits, and you must make them aware of the situation.
If you don’t alert your employer first, they might tell your insurer that they were unaware of the injury. This looks bad for your claim, as the insurance company could accuse you of attempting to scam the system. It might believe you are trying to collect on an injury that didn’t actually occur.
Poorly Timing Your Claim
When you’ve been injured, it’s easy to get distracted. You spend so much time seeking treatment and recovering that you can let important deadlines pass you by. If you’ve been injured on the job in California, you have only 30 days to file your workers’ comp requests. Make sure you prioritize this step. Even one day of lateness could lead to a denial.
Failure to Seek Treatment
You may be completely aware of what your injury is and how to treat it. Without the proper documentation, however, you can’t file a proper workers’ comp claim. Even if seeing a doctor feels irrelevant, do so and get a proper, written diagnosis. That way, the insurance company can’t claim that your injuries are false.
Going Right Back to Work
Your insurer or your employer may pressure you to go back to your job. This could be an attempt to claim that you are fine, and you do not require workers’ comp. Don’t fall for this. Only your medical professional can make this determination. If your doctor doesn’t believe you should return to work, then you need compensation for the time it takes to properly recover.
Trying to Do Everything Yourself
Seeking outside help can be a burden. It requires time, travel, and cost. It’s tempting to avoid all that and try taking care of the matter on your own. This, however, is not wise. Before submitting any of your worker’s comp paperwork, you should take it to an attorney.
A lawyer can look over your application and find potential pitfalls. They know how your insurer thinks, and they can stop problems before they begin. Your attorney can help you phrase your application property, make sure you have your paperwork in order, offer you suggestions for other steps you can take, and so on. Taking this extra step might feel tedious at the moment, but it can pay off in the long run.
Our firm is happy to help overlook your workers’ comp application. If you are denied, we can represent you on an appeal. For a free consultation, call us at (714) 909-2609 or contact us online.