Getting injured at work can be a scary and frustrating time because you’re at risk of losing wages as you’re not able to work. You can recoup some of those wages and get your medical bills covered with help from Workers’ Compensation. While this program is made available to help those who have been injured on the job, it’s up to you to make sure that you follow the necessary steps to be eligible for coverage. At Mishra X Trial Lawyers, we have a few things that you should keep in mind while you file your workers’ comp claim in the Greater LA area.
Be honest
Honesty is always the best policy. If you’re exaggerating your symptoms or being dishonest about what happened to you, it’s going to catch up to you eventually and you’ll get caught in a lie. Remember that you’re going to be watched and nitpicked throughout the entire process so you need to make sure that you have the details of the incident consistent from the beginning. Be honest with your employer, case manager, and lawyer to ensure that you’re able to keep your story straight from the beginning through your entire claims process.
Hire a lawyer
Working with your employer and workers’ comp is going to be a difficult process. There might be times when you’ll have medical treatment that’s needed but coverage is denied or additional paperwork needs to be filed. Having a lawyer on your side is a great way to ensure that you have somebody who is working for you as an advocate for your case.
File right away
Don’t wait to see if your condition improves before filing a workers’ comp claim. It’s crucial that you file your claim as soon as you can after your injury because you have 30 days to report it. Once it’s been reported, you have a year to file your claim. However, it’s important to keep in mind that the sooner you have your claim filed, the less likely you are to have to pay any money out of pocket.
Be specific
Don’t leave anything up to the imagination of the insurance company or your employer. Be specific about what exactly happened when you were injured. This is an important piece to filing your claim because the more specific you are with your claim, the more likely you are to get the help that you need. Any information that’s left out at the onset of your claim is less likely to be able to be included as your case progresses.
Keep everything
There is going to be a lot of paperwork that comes to you as you file your claims and continue through your case. You need to keep all of it. Make yourself a specific folder to hold onto everything from copies of your initial claim to all correspondence that comes to you in the mail or electronically. You might need to refer to these items at a later date so they should be easily accessible.
Schedule a consultation for more
Don’t put off filing your workers’ comp claim in the Greater LA area, get in touch with our team at Mishra X Trial Lawyers to get started. We’re experts at fighting for the rights of our clients so you can maximize your benefits after an injury at work. Schedule a meeting with our team by calling 949-343-9735 or sending a message using our online contact form. Please don’t send sensitive information through our form, we’ll get to that when we meet.