Every worker must know their rights. Employers must have no-fault insurance for all their employees. As with any other type of insurance, there are advantages and disadvantages.
Understanding workers’ compensation is essential for every worker. If they get hurt, they will know what to do, when they can sue, and when they can’t.
Keep reading to find out the details about workers’ compensation benefits and when filing a personal injury lawsuit would be better. The Ward Law Group has a great team of personal injury lawyers who have helped many families with their injury cases.
This article is intended to learn about workers’ comp vs personal injury.
What is Workers’ Compensation
Workers’ compensation is a no-fault insurance that all employees are entitled to get when they start working in a new job. It does not matter what industry the job they perform.
Indeed, most of the time, people talk about workers’ comp when it comes to construction workers and accidents sustained on a construction site, but that is because of the high probability that an accident will happen in those places.
If a worker gets hurt, they can claim workers’ comp. It doesn’t matter who caused the injury; the worker will get money for medical bills and some of their monthly pay.
You may have tripped in the hall or crushed your fingers with a door, it could have been your mistake, but that does not matter. The no-fault worker’s compensation insurance is going to assist you.
There are a few exclusions, of course. If the worker was drunk or high at work and got hurt, this insurance won’t cover it.
The other exclusion would be if the worker injured her or himself to get the insurance compensation. This insurance has benefits for both the employer and the employee. The worker can receive payment without proving someone else’s fault. Employers keep themselves safe from lawsuits by ensuring all employees have insurance and preventing coworkers from suing each other.
What is Personal Injury?
In construction projects, injured workers can sometimes sue other workers or entities involved. This happens because of the nature of the work and the number of people involved.
Personal Injury vs. Workers Comp
The requirement is that these other workers can not be under the employment of the same contractor, they must be different companies’ representatives, and there must be proof of negligence from the defendant.
A personal injury can be sustained in many ways, and it is not a rule that must be in the workplace. For instance, imagine a person the main contractor hired to perform safety duties. It is a “spotter” and assists a constructive vehicle getting out of the construction site. Suddenly a neglected motorist does not follow the traffic signs and hits the spotter, who is appropriately dressed.
Due to the accident, the spotter worker got injured; the accident scene was just outside his workplace, over a side street. This worker can easily file a personal injury lawsuit against the negligent motorist. The worker’s compensation construction accident was also a traffic accident; he may receive compensation from the motorist insurance company through liability coverage.
However, if the worker wants to pursue compensation for noneconomic damages like pain and suffering, the best move is to file the lawsuit directly.
What is a Third Party Claim
Let’s see another example of a worker setting a third-party claim. There is a house project where the ones in charge of installing the roof are a subcontracted company, so the roofing crew arrives and starts working. At the same time, the prime contractor’s workers are still performing duties on the ground level.
Later that day, one of the roofing crew, who was not correctly using a safety device to keep all his tools in his belt, made a mistake, and one of the tools fell to the ground; where unfortunately, another worker of the prime contractor was walking by. The falling object knocked out the worker, who was taken to the emergency room.
In this hypothetical scenario. The injured worker has enough grounds to set a third-party claim.
Should I file a Workers Personal Injury Claim?
Before filing a personal injury claim, you must review the circumstances; you must have the assistance of a personal injury lawyer to help you in such cases. It might be complex. However, the expertise of a lawyer who has often done lawsuits like this one will make it easy.
You have to think about how the injury was sustained. Was the accident this third party caused the accident? How was it? If the third party caused it and you have proof, then you have a solid case. If there is no proof, your lawyer may investigate the accident and find proper documentation to set a forceful argument.
It is not difficult to find eyewitnesses in the surrounding area or video footage of the accident; cameras are usually around a construction site within the city, not to mention all other employees there. There should be an accident report written by the construction site supervisor that states everything. Moreover, if a motorist outside the construction site caused the accident, the police must have done a traffic accident report where your and the at-fault party’s name are in it.
Should I file a Workers Comp Claim?
When a worker is trying to get compensation through the insurance worker’s comp, they only care about whether they were on duty.
Meet John, a construction worker in a difficult situation after a workplace accident. While performing his duties on a construction site, he was hit by falling debris, resulting in a severe injury to his leg. As he lay in pain, he couldn’t help but wonder about his options for compensation.
Knowing the importance of workers’ compensation, John quickly sought assistance from his employer’s insurance company.
In this process, he realized that what truly mattered was whether he was on duty at the time of the incident and if the accident occurred at the workplace. The identity of the responsible party was deemed irrelevant.
John’s primary concern was to receive the coverage he was entitled to for his medical expenses and lost wages. To his relief, John learned that even if the accident was caused by a coworker who the same employer directly employed, he couldn’t sue them now.
However, he could still obtain workers’ compensation coverage, ensuring his financial needs would be met during his recovery. This knowledge gave him a sense of security, knowing that his employer’s insurance would take care of his well-being and provide the necessary support while he focused on rehabilitation.
Can I file both types of claims?
When the circumstances allow it, yes! You can file claims for workers’ comp and personal injury lawsuits. Insurance companies only require proof that you were working and not intoxicated or intentionally causing harm when you got injured. This allows you to submit a claim.
You need to make sure someone else caused the accident. If they caused it and it hurt you, you must show proof. Videos, pictures, company investigations, or police investigations can determine who is responsible for the accident.
Contact a Personal Injury Lawyer
To set up a worker compensation claim, you may receive help from your employer or the insurance company they selected. In some cases, you may want to have a backup, which is a wise move. The Ward Law Group specializes in personal injury only. However, we can refer to a worker’s compensation attorney for you.
Suppose your case involves a third party whose negligent actions caused your injuries. In that case, our finest experienced, respected personal injury lawyers in New York City can assist you in getting extra compensation to cover your damages. Remember that the workers’ compensation coverage may not be sufficient to pay for all your expenses.
Suppose you suffer from serious injuries such as broken bones, severe traumatic brain injuries, spinal cord injuries, loss of a limb, etc. In that case, that insurance coverage will not cover the future expenses and noneconomic damages it may cause you. Contact us for a free consultation of your case at 855-DOLOR-55, and one of our lawyers will answer all your questions immediately.