Workers might be under the impression that they will realize immediately after they have suffered an injury at work. This is true for some accidents such as being in an auto accident while making a delivery, being hit by an object or suffering a fall.
However, there are medical problems that do not show themselves as soon as they happen. If a person has an illness or condition from their work or they have an injury that takes time to manifest, there could be a gap from when it started to when they realize they are having an issue.
Since treatment is so essential and they could miss time on the job because of it, it is imperative to understand the statute of limitations to file for workers’ compensation benefits. This can be a topic of dispute when filing a claim. When there is concern over a work injury or condition and the injured person or their family is unaware of the law and their rights, it is wise to have advice.
Know the time limits to file for workers’ compensation
According to state law, a worker seeking workers’ compensation benefits has four years from the time they realize they are injured to file a claim. The same is true for a family who has lost a loved one in a work accident.
Knowing the causal relationship between the medical issue and the job is key. For example, if a construction worker has a back injury, they might have been under the impression that it was connected to the manual labor they need to perform as part of the job and was not severe enough to file a claim.
Perhaps the injury becomes worse as time passed and there was a specific incident they can point to for when it happened. When they are diagnosed as having an injury that prevents them from working and they need medical care, they need to show the connection between their work and the injury and do so within four years of it happening.
If a worker was in close contact with chemicals that made them ill, they might not have been aware of the risk in the immediate aftermath. As they became ill and are diagnosed as having a condition or illness because of those chemicals, they must file within four years of being made aware of the link and show that there was a causal connection.
For people who are denied workers’ compensation benefits, they will also have four years to file an appeal. In the past, when workers were injured prior to Jan. 1, 1986, they only had one year to file.
Workers’ compensation claims must be filed in a timely fashion
The statute of limitations is crucial as people who miss their deadline can miss out on benefits they might otherwise have received. In some instances, workers did not know their rights at all and continued working or lost their job because they were injured.
There can be vast medical costs, lost income and fear as to what will happen in the future. For these or any other workers’ compensation-related issue, it is useful to have attentive and caring help from the outset. This is vital to gathering evidence, filing the claim and understanding the options to be approved.
