The things you do in the hours and days following your workplace accident are critical. If you make one error, it can come back to haunt you in a big way. Being out of work for weeks or even months at a time it’s not something anybody can afford to do. If you’re not receiving workers compensation benefits, it will be impossible to pay your bills. And, if your workers comp claim isn’t approved, you’ll be responsible for the medical bills yourself.
Your primary health insurance carrier isn’t going to want to cover medical treatment caused by a workplace accident. They’ll surely want to know what you did to jeopardize your workers comp claim or cause it to be denied. Rather than have this happen, it’s a good idea to hire an experienced Tampa workers comp lawyer as soon as possible after your workplace accident.
If you retain an attorney, they can help you file your initial workers comp claim in Florida. They’ll do their best to make sure it’s approved. You won’t have to worry about them making the same kinds of mistakes you may have made. If your workers comp claim is still denied, at least you’ll know it has nothing to do with a mistake you made. It means the insurance company, and your employer, had no intention of paying your claim in the first place.
It’s Important that You Report Your Workplace Injuries Immediately
One of the biggest mistakes you can make is not reporting your workplace accident right away. While your company’s policy on workplace injuries may require you to report your injury within thirty days, the longer you take to report your accident, the harder it will be to get your workers comp claim approved.
If you didn’t report your accident within a day or two of your injuries, your employer will argue that something other than a workplace accident caused them. They may even argue that you weren’t involved in a workplace accident at all. They’ll say that you were hurt on personal time and are just trying to get workers compensation to pay for it. Sadly, this happens a lot so your employer is going to be suspicious of anybody who takes days or weeks to report an alleged workplace injury.
Don’t Wait Too Long to File Your Workers Comp Claim in Florida
Regardless of how long you wait to report your injury to your employer, you don’t want to wait too long to file your workers comp claim. Your workers comp claim attorney in Tampa can help you do this if you hire them early enough in the process.
Technically, the statute of limitations for workers comp in Florida is two years. However, nobody is foolish enough to wait that long to file their claim. How can you possibly suffer from a work injury for that long before doing anything about it? You can bet your Tampa workers compensation lawyer will make sure you file your workers comp claim sooner than that. There’s really no reason to wait more than a few days before you file this claim. Unless you’re waiting for documentation from your doctor, there’s no justification for waiting that long to file your initial workers comp claim.
Your Claim Will be Denied if You’re Under the Influence of Drugs or Alcohol
This should go without saying, however, if you are under the influence of drugs or alcohol at the time of your workplace accident, it will not be covered. This is one of the reasons employers are so suspicious of people who wait longer than a week or two to report their injuries. If someone is under the influence of drugs at the time of their accident, they know they’re going to be drug tested.
There are very few employers in Florida who don’t perform a drug test prior to sending an employee out for medical treatment. Employees think that, if they wait a couple of weeks, the drug will be out of their system and won’t show up on a urine test. However, your employer is well aware of this ploy. You cannot assume that you’ll be given a urine test. If your workers comp claim is large enough, your employer and the insurance company may want you to take a hair follicle or blood test instead.
Make Sure You’re Treated by a State-Approved Workers Comp Doctor
If you get hurt on the job, you must be treated by a state-approved workers comp doctor. Your employer, or their insurance carrier, will assign a doctor to you. Florida is very clear on this, as are almost every other state. If you’re treated by somebody else, your medical bills will not be covered. This is why it’s important that you seek a workers compensation attorney in Tampa at the start of your claim.
If you don’t feel your assigned doctor is competent, or you just don’t feel comfortable with them, let your attorney know. They can contact the insurance company and ask that a different physician be assigned to your case.
Talk to an Experienced Tampa Workers Comp Lawyer as Soon as Possible After Your Accident
If you were hurt on the job and are having trouble getting your workers compensation benefits, you should contact our office right away. Whether your workers comp claim has already been denied or you have a feeling it will be, you need to get an experienced Tampa workers comp lawyer on the case as soon as possible. They can review whatever paperwork you already submitted, as well as any correspondence you have received from your employer or their insurance carrier.
A lot of people don’t realize that they can make one simple mistake early on in their workers comp claim only to have it jeopardize their benefits. If you have been out of work for more than two weeks already, and you haven’t received any benefits, you could be in trouble. It’s important that you have a Tampa workers compensation lawyer handle the workers comp claim for you. They can try to clean up any mistakes you already made, and ensure the rest of your claim is handled properly.
Since we offer all of our clients a free, initial consultation. It won’t cost you anything to meet with one of our attorneys. Our workers compensation attorneys in Tampa, Florida have handled hundreds of these cases and will do their best to get you the benefits you deserve.
