Redding Workers’ Compensation Lawyer

Legal Allies for Injured Workers

At the Law Offices of Larry S. Buckley, we believe that every worker should be able to collect workers’ compensation without stress. Unfortunately, insurance companies often seem to think oppositely. We have been called again and again to help workers and employees who have found themselves going head-to-head with an insurer who does not want to honor their workers’ compensation claim.

We can help workers from all sorts of industries, such as:

• Healthcare providers
• Police officers
• Firefighters
• Retail workers
• Foodservice workers
• Landscaping professionals
• Officer workers
• And more

A portion of our law firm is entirely dedicated to workers’ compensation claims, cases, and lawsuits. This level of focus has sharpened our skills and enables us to challenge major insurance companies with confidence. Place your case in trusted hands by hiring our team today.

Dial (530) 491-4727 and schedule an initial consultation today.

Are You Eligible for Workers’ Comp?

The first question in any workers’ compensation claim is whether or not you are even covered by a workers’ compensation policy. In California, any company with at least one employee must purchase workers’ compensation insurance to cover them in the event of a workplace accident. On the other hand, independent contractors do not need to be covered by workers’ comp.

If you do have been told you do not have workers’ compensation coverage as part of your employment benefits, you should not assume that is strictly true. Your employer might have inadvertently or intentionally mislabeled you as an independent contractor even though you fit the legal definition of an employee in California. Our Redding workers’ compensation attorney can help begin your case by reviewing your employment status and checking to see if you should be covered and capable of filing a claim.

Benefits Provided Through Workers’ Compensation

Here are several benefits that you can get through a successful workers’ comp claim:

• Medical Care: Covers all necessary medical treatments to address a work-related injury or illness, including doctor visits, hospital stays, and medications. Workers receive this care at no out-of-pocket cost.
• Temporary Disability (TD) Benefits: Provides compensation for lost wages when an injury prevents the worker from returning to their job temporarily. Benefits typically amount to two-thirds of the worker’s average weekly wage.
• Permanent Disability (PD) Benefits: Compensates workers who suffer a permanent impairment that affects their ability to earn a living. The benefit amount depends on the severity of the disability and the worker's pre-injury wages.
• Supplemental Job Displacement Benefits (SJDB): Offers a voucher for retraining or education if an injured worker cannot return to their previous job. The voucher is worth up to $6,000 for approved expenses.
• Death Benefits: Provides financial support to the dependents of a worker who dies due to a work-related injury or illness. It includes ongoing payments to dependents and coverage for funeral expenses.
• Return-to-Work Supplement Program: Offers a one-time payment of $5,000 to workers who qualify for a retraining voucher, helping them transition back into the workforce.
• Life Pension Payments: Available to workers with a permanent disability rating of 70% or more, providing additional lifelong financial support based on the disability rating and prior earnings.

Workers’ Compensation Benefits Duration in California

Workers’ compensation benefits will not last forever. The typical maximum duration for workers’ comp benefits provided in California caps at 104 weeks within 5 years. Most claims are paid out for a much shorter period, though, because the benefits end once the employee can return to gainful employment. Serious but not life-changing injuries usually heal before the 104-week limit, so the cap is not reached.

Although, it is possible to receive some benefits for longer than this limit. Permanent disability benefits can provide financial support for the rest of your life. Even still, many people who receive permanent disability benefits do not receive them forever because they can end early for several reasons, including hitting a total cap on available payments.

Notify Your Employer As Soon As Possible

You need to inform your employer of your workplace accident within 30 days of it occurring. Otherwise, your claim can be denied by the insurance company with little room for counterarguments.

Waiting the full 30 days to say something is not recommended at all, though. The sooner you speak to your employer about the accident, the better. A fresh memory of the events will be better for building a claim and staying consistent in your reports. Ideally, you will tell your employer the same day or hour that your accident happens.

What Do You Do If Your Claim is Denied?

It is common for workers’ compensation claims to be denied up front and without a clear reason. In some industries, upwards of 33% of workers’ comp claims face first-time denials.

Here are some of the common reasons why a workers' compensation claim might be denied:

• Lack of Timely Reporting: If the employee fails to report the injury or illness to their employer within the required time frame, the claim may be denied. Deadlines for reporting vary by state.
• Inadequate Documentation: Insufficient or missing medical records, witness statements, or other evidence that supports the claim can lead to a denial.
• Disputes Over the Injury's Work-Relatedness: If the employer or insurance company disputes that the injury or illness is work-related, they may deny the claim. This is common if the injury happened off-site or if there’s no clear connection to job duties.
• Pre-Existing Condition: If the injury is attributed to a pre-existing condition rather than a new workplace incident, the claim may be denied.
• Failure to Seek Immediate Medical Treatment: Delays in seeking medical treatment after the injury can raise doubts about the severity or cause of the injury, leading to a denial.
• Non-Compliance with Medical Treatment: If the employee does not follow the prescribed medical treatment plan or fails to attend follow-up appointments, the claim might be denied.
• Discrepancies in the Employee’s Account: Inconsistent statements by the employee about how the injury occurred or the extent of the injury can result in a denied claim.
• Injury Occurred During Non-Work Activities: If the injury happened while the employee was engaging in activities not related to their job (e.g., on a lunch break or commuting), the claim might be denied.
• Drug or Alcohol Use: If it is determined that the employee was under the influence of drugs or alcohol at the time of the injury, the claim may be denied.
• Failure to Meet Filing Deadlines: Workers’ compensation claims have strict filing deadlines. Missing these deadlines can result in an automatic denial of the claim.
• Lack of Employment Status: If the claimant was not officially employed at the time of the injury (e.g., they were an independent contractor), the claim might be denied.
• Employer Disputes the Claim: Sometimes employers may contest the claim, especially if they believe the injury is fraudulent or exaggerated, leading to a denial.

If your claim has been denied for any reason, then do not give up. You probably still have an option to challenge the denial with the assistance of our Redding workers’ compensation attorneys.

We can send a challenge letter to the insurer and request more information about why the claim was denied. In some situations, we can convince an insurance company to concede and reverse its denial just from what we argue in this initial letter. If this does not work, then we can talk to you about building an appeal case, which asks the California Department of Workers’ Compensation (DWC) and the Workers’ Compensation Appeals Board (WCAB) to review your case and, hopefully, reserve the denial.

Pros & Cons of Workers’ Compensation

Workers’ compensation sounds like a great program with a cursory review because, in many ways, it is. Yet, as with all things, there are benefits and disadvantages of workers’ compensation that you should know about before you get too far into your claim.

What are the pros and cons of workers’ compensation?

• Pros: The best benefit of workers’ compensation is that it is a no-fault system. You can accidentally cause your own workplace injury and still be eligible to receive benefits because liability is not a deciding factor. Compare this system to a standard personal injury claim, which requires the plaintiff to prove that the defendant was liable for their injuries. It can be greatly reassuring to know that you will receive some sort of compensation after a workplace accident, regardless of why it happened.
• Cons: Perhaps the worst downside of workers’ compensation is that it usually stops you from suing your employer for negligence if they caused your accident. Without the option to file an injury claim or lawsuit, the damages you can collect will be limited to whatever workers’ compensation provides. If you have been severely injured, then workers’ compensation benefits might not be or feel like enough to cover the true extent of your injuries, especially because workers’ comp does not provide noneconomic damages for things like pain and suffering.

Reach Out Today to Start on the Right Foot

There are plenty of little details that can go wrong when filing for workers’ compensation or developing an appeal after a denial. You should not try to sort through every issue on your own, especially if you are not familiar with the law yourself. To let yourself rest while simultaneously creating a powerful case, put our Redding workers’ compensation lawyers in charge!

Please call us at (530) 491-4727 and request a free consultationwithout delay.