Carroll County sheriff’s deputy injured in collision

The Carroll County Sheriff’s Office is investigating a vehicle collision between a civilian vehicle and a marked patrol car.  The sheriff’s deputy was transported to Carroll Hospital.

It is important to promptly file a claim for workers compensation benefits when an employee is injured.  It is best to have an attorney do that for you.  Otherwise, you may make a mistake that delays the process/

Workers Compensation Process

For the first 28 days after a claim is filed, the consideration period, the insurance company does not have to do anything.

As a result, if you delay filing a claim, you may delay medical care and payment of compensation if you are off and can’t work. The sooner a lawyer gets involved, the more you increase your chances of prompt medical care and payment of compensation.

Once you have filed a claim, the mechanism for forcing the insurance company to do something is issues filed with the Workers’ Compensation Commission.  That includes medical care and payment of Temporary Total Disability.

In the case of a catastrophic injury, it could be disastrous to the injured worker if they have not timely filed a claim.  A claim filed with the insurance company is not a claim filed with the Workers Compensation Commission.

Only a claim with the commission secures your claim. There are statutes of limitation.

Finished treating, now what?

When you are done treating and have returned to work, you are entitled to Permanent partial disability.  That is compensation for any disability you have.

Insurance companies will often offer to settle cases once a person has recovered.  Those settlements are typically well below what an injured worker would get if they are represented by a lawyer.

The process of a permanent partial disability rating is a complex process and really requires the involvement of a lawyer that will send you to a doctor.

If properly managed, an injured worker will have the right to future compensation and lifetime medical care from the insurance company.  This is where a lawyer can be of the greatest value.

Schedule a free Workers Compensation consultation today!

Insurance companies like to settle cases full and final so they don’t have future exposure.  A lawyer can properly advise an injured worker with regard to a settlement or a permanent partial disability award.