It isn’t uncommon for employees to sustain injuries while working for their employers. Sometimes disputes arise as to whether an employer is financially responsible for covering the injury, to include medical expenses, missed work, and permanent disability.
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The law of Worker’s Compensation has increasingly become more complex. What used to be a simple idea that all work-related injuries were to be compensated, has turned into a maze of debates and developments in the law on what constitutes a work-related injury; what falls within exceptions to compensation; and what things can be considered compensable.
The South Carolina Worker’s Compensation Act defines work-related injuries, and it sets forth a series of guidelines to determine how to provide compensation for injuries. As a simple summary, the Act establishes:
(A) The form and amount of temporary compensation for an injured employee while the employee is unable to work;
(B) The manner in which an employee can obtain free medical care, with no insurance deductibles or co-pays; and
(C) The form and amount of any money award that an employee may receive.
There can be numerous difficulties faced by an injured employee who seeks assistance from Worker’s Compensation:
(A) Sometimes employers wrongfully intimidate or encourage employees not to pursue a Worker’s Compensation claim;
(B) Sometimes the employer and/or the insurance carrier try to fight the claim by saying that it is not compensable for a number of different reasons, or they may try to stall and delay action on the claim;
(C) Sometimes there are disputes on the amount of compensation that an injured employee is entitled to receive;
(D) Sometimes disputes arise as to whether an injured employee has followed some of the technical requirements of the Worker’s Compensation Act to allow for compensation; and
(E) Quite often, disputes arise as to the extent and degree to which an employee has been injured.
It is not uncommon for injured employees to be told that they do not need a lawyer. If you are ever told this, you should consider the source: Is this your employer? Is it the insurance carrier (adjuster)? Is it the treating physician who was hired by the insurance carrier?
It is strongly advised that injured employees have attorneys to represent them to enable them to be properly compensated. Our firm has been representing clients in the upstate for decades. Our experience and strategies have proven beneficial for many clients who have been injured on the job. We know what it takes to get through the challenges of a Worker’s Compensation claim.
If you have been injured while working for your employer in Spartanburg, South Carolina, contact us to see if we can help you through the challenges of your Worker’s Compensation claim, so that you can get the care that you need, and you can receive the compensation to which you are entitled.
