Archives for August 2017

August 29, 2017 By Leave a Comment

You Could Be on Candid Camera…and It Could Squash Your Workers’ Compensation Claim

workers-compensation-insurerWhen you’ve suffered an injury on the job, you have a right to seek workers’ compensation benefits for any temporary or long term disability that keeps you from working or for any partial, but permanent, injury. Your employer and the workers’ compensation insurance company, though, have an incentive to minimize the amount paid to you, or to deny your claim altogether, as your claim cuts into their profits. So they’ll often use any means at their disposal to try to invalidate your claim, including hiring private investigators to secretly videotape you.

The easiest way to avoid any potential problems in a workers’ compensation claim is to be honest with doctors at all times. Don’t exaggerate the extent of your injury because you think it will ensure that you get benefits. If you really are hurt, it won’t be difficult to refrain from doing things that might indicate you aren’t injured. But if you overstate the nature of your injury, you’ll have to be conscious of the exaggeration you made at all times. You could easily forget that you told doctors you couldn’t lift more than 10 pounds and then be videotaped carrying in bags of groceries or hauling a keg of beer.

Another tip—be willing to acknowledge your injury and that you need to alter your lifestyle to really have a chance at getting healthy. If you are accustomed to being active—you play golf, bowl or like to do physical work around the yard—recognize that maintaining the same level of activity will likely be used as evidence that your injury does not merit workers’ compensation benefits.

Contact Us

At Taylor & Boguski, we bring more than 70 years of combined legal experience to men and women throughout New Jersey. For a free initial consultation, contact our office online or call us at 856-200-8989.

We handle all workers’ compensation claims on a contingency basis. There will be no attorney fees unless we recover damages for your losses.

Filed Under: Personal Injury, Workers Compensation Tagged With:
August 2, 2017 By Leave a Comment

common-mistakes-when-filing-for-workers-compensation-part-twoIf you’ve been hurt at work and had to pursue workers’ compensation benefits, you know that the process can be long and difficult, even when it seems like you have an open and shut case. You don’t want to make some of the common mistakes people do, errors that can delay your receipt of benefits or even disqualify you. We’ve talked about some of the medical issues, such as failing to get a second opinion or failing to follow doctor’s orders. Here are some of the more fundamental mistakes that can jeopardize your right to benefits.

Waiting to Notify Your Employer

You should let your employer know of your injury as soon as possible. Remember, your employer and the workers’ compensation insurance company have a vested interest in paying as little as possible (or nothing, if they can get away with it) to settle your claim. The longer you wait, the greater the risk that your employer or the insurance company will make one or both of the following arguments:

  • Your injury wasn’t really that serious, or you would have notified your employer immediately
  • Your injury was caused by some intervening event (another accident, unrelated to work)

Waiting to File Your Workers’ Compensation Claim

There’s a time limit for filing a workers’ compensation claim. If you don’t submit your claim within the required period of time, you stand a good chance of losing any right to benefits.

Trusting that Your Employer Will Take Care of Everything for You

Don’t operate under the mistaken assumption that your employer will acknowledge your injury and help you get the benefits you need. By the same token, don’t try to handle the workers’ compensation claim on your own. Your employer and/or the insurance company will likely have your claim reviewed by legal counsel, and may actually employ attorneys to try to deny or diminish your claim. Hire an experienced lawyer as soon as possible to ensure that your rights are protected.

Contact Us

At Taylor & Boguski, we bring more than 70 years of combined legal experience to injured workers throughout New Jersey. For a free initial consultation, contact our office online or call us at 856-200-8989.

We handle all workers’ compensation claims on a contingency basis. We won’t charge you attorney fees if we don’t recover compensation for your losses.

Filed Under: Work - Related Injury, Workers Compensation Tagged With: ,