If you have been injured at work, you have the right to seek compensation for your damages. Work-related injuries in Kendall occur frequently despite the fact that employers have a responsibility to keep their employees reasonably safe while working. You have the right to be compensated for any time you have to miss work to recover from your injuries and for any expenses incurred. While it is almost impossible for you to accurately value your damages on your own, a Kendall workers’ compensation lawyer can help you determine your case’s worth.
1-800-Injured is an attorney and medical referral service connecting injured employees with local, experienced personal injury lawyers in Florida. Contact us today to be connected with an attorney or medical professional to ensure your rights are protected, and you receive the medical care you need.
Types of Florida Workers’ Compensation Injuries
Daily operations of any business can create hazards for employees. There are a variety of injuries that can occur while on the job. Some of the injuries seen most often in Florida workers comp cases include:
- Amputations
- Carpal tunnel syndrome
- Dismemberment
- Neck injury
- Arm injury
- Catastrophic injury
- Hearing loss
- Vision loss
- Cuts and lacerations
- Back injury
- Chemical exposure
- Head injury
- Knee injury
- Shoulder injury
- Repetitive trauma
- Death
An experienced Kendall workers’ compensation attorney can fight for your rights if you have been injured in a work-related accident. Contact 1-800-Injured today to be connected with an aggressive personal injury attorney in your area.
How the Florida Workers’ Compensation Process Works
Construction companies that employ one or more people and other businesses that employ over four employees are required to carry workers’ compensation insurance under FL workers’ compensation law. This requirement is to ensure that any employee who is injured on the job will get paid for their lost wages and injuries.
Unfortunately, problems do arise for employees who are injured on the job. Workers compensation programs are run by insurance companies, not the employers themselves. Workers compensation insurance carriers are no different than any other insurance company. Their main focus is the insurance company’s bottom line so they aim to pay out as little as possible in claims.
To protect its bottom line, construction workers’ compensation insurance carriers will try to find an excuse to undervalue or deny injury claims. As an injured worker who did nothing wrong, this puts you in a tough spot. Regardless of how valuable you were to your employer and how hard you worked, this fact does not influence the insurance process. It is the insurance company’s word against yours. This is not a fair fight, and you deserve a knowledgeable lawyer to help level the playing field.
How Can a Kendall Workers Compensation Lawyer Help Me?
Attempting to fight the insurance company alone will prove to be difficult. First, you are injured and unable to work. Second, insurance companies spend each day finding new ways to deny workers’ compensation claims or pay out the least amount possible. This is where an experienced Kendall workers’ compensation lawyer can help.
Kendall workers’ compensation attorneys have experience fighting and winning for injured workers. A knowledgeable law firm can help in the following ways:
- Fight a workers’ compensation carrier’s denial of benefits or ending benefits prematurely
- Gathering required evidence for your injury case
- Ensure you meet the deadlines for filing appeals for your workers’ comp claim denial
- Help contest a claim denial for full or partial disability benefits
- Represent your injury case in a lawsuit
- Negotiate a fair settlement on your behalf
A workers’ compensation lawyer’s job is to handle the stressful details of your case so you can focus on fully recovering from your injuries. Contact 1-800-Injured today to speak with one of the dedicated workers’ compensation attorneys.
Can I Fight a Workers Compensation Claim that Was Wrongfully Denied?
There are certain steps that must be taken in the workers compensation process. Under Florida law, an employee must receive medical treatment from a healthcare provider approved by the employer’s workers’ compensation insurance carrier.
This often proves to be in the best interest of the employer and not the injured worker. Oftentimes, the first responsibility of a doctor should be to their injured patient. A doctor chosen and paid for by an insurance company has a financial incentive to minimize or deny your injury claim. So, how are they truly on your side?
If the doctor approves multiple injury claims, they are likely to lose the contract with the insurance carrier. Therefore, they may downplay your work-related injuries, stating they are not serious enough to prevent you from working. Fortunately, the doctor’s opinion is not the final verdict for your workers’ compensation claim.
If denied you can seek a second opinion
You must first seek medical attention from the original medical professional, but nothing stops you from receiving a second opinion. A Kendall workers compensation attorney can arrange for a different physician to see you who does not have the same conflict of interest with the insurance company.
How Much Is My Kendall Workers Compensation Claim Worth?
Your attorney will look at several factors when considering the value of your injury case. Some of the factors include:
- The cost of your medical expenses, including ambulance rides, doctor’s visits, tests and X-rays, physical therapy sessions, medications, and necessary home modifications to accommodate durable medical equipment
- The wages you were earning at the time of your work-related injury, including regular earnings, commissions or tips, and overtime
- The amount of time your physician expects you to be out of work recovering from your injuries
- Whether you have suffered a permanent or temporary disability
- An estimate of your long-term earning potential
- Legal fees for the attorney
Depending on the industry you work in and the severity of your injuries, settlement claims can range from a few thousand to millions of dollars. Depending on the circumstances, two employees could be injured at the same company and wind up with very different settlements.
Minor injuries and lacerations could result in lower settlements, while back injuries and broken limbs would result in a higher settlement. Any injury that occurs while on the job is worth pursuing if those injuries prevent you from returning to work.
While every workers’ compensation claim differs, the average settlement amount typically awarded when representing injured workers falls between $2,000-$40,000. Again, this will vary based on your injury, the industry and company you work for, your ability to return to work, if your injury causes permanent disability, etc. A worker facing permanent injury who is unable to earn a living will likely receive a much higher settlement amount.
1-800-Injured can connect you with a Kendall workers’ compensation attorney who will assist you through the process, ensuring you understand your legal rights and what is needed to seek fair compensation for your case.
Statute of Limitations For a Florida Workers’ Compensation Claim
It’s important to be aware of the statute of limitations for filing a work-related injury claim. After being injured at work, you are given a certain time limit to file a claim and seek financial compensation for lost wages, medical bills, and other damages.
The statute of limitations has different exceptions and rules depending on how your injuries occurred. For work injury claims in Kendall, the statute of limitations is two years from the date you were injured. If your claim is not filed within this time, you may be prevented from seeking compensation for your injuries.
Statute of limitation exceptions
The Florida statute of limitations has some exceptions for work injury claims. If your injuries were not immediately known, you could have two years from the date of discovery or the date your injuries should have been discovered to file your injury claim. Another exception would be if your employer did not provide you with the proper notice of your legal rights along with the time limit for filing an injury claim.
Contact 1-800-Injured to Find a Workers’ Compensation Lawyer in Kendall, FL
If you have suffered a work-related injury, you deserve to have an attorney who understands Florida law and is prepared to fight for your legal rights and get you the compensation you deserve.
1-800-Injured is an attorney and medical referral service connecting injured workers to proven and professional attorneys in Kendall. Contact 1-800-Injured today via our secure online form.