Workers’ compensation is a mandatory insurance taken out by employers to provide financial protection for employees who are injured on the job, or for their dependents after they die. The goal of the law is to reduce the number of work-related injuries and deaths, especially in high-risk professions like construction, mining, and truck driving. Workers’ compensation benefits are vital when it comes to long-term rehabilitation, lost wages, medical bills, emotional distress, PTSD treatment, and other expenses related to your injury. Here are some important things you should know about workers’ compensation benefits work.
What is workers’ compensation?
Workers’ compensation is a mandatory insurance taken out by employers to provide financial protection for employees who are injured on the job or for their dependents after they die. The goal of the law is to reduce the number of work-related injuries and deaths, especially in high-risk professions like construction, mining, and truck driving. Workers’ compensation benefits are vital when it comes to long-term rehabilitation, lost wages, medical bills, emotional distress, PTSD treatment, and other expenses related to your injury.
Who can receive benefits from work?
In the United States, workers’ compensation insurance is a mandatory policy taken out by employers. According to cwilc.com, the benefits are available to all employees who are injured on the job, or for their dependents if they die during a work-related incident. There is no requirement that an employee be employed at a specific company at the time of injury to receive work benefits.
The law provides for both short-term and long-term benefits. Short-term benefits help with medical bills and loss of wages, while long-term payments can be used for rehabilitation and psychological trauma treatment. Some states offer disability insurance payments as well.
Further, there is no age limit on who can receive these benefits from work, so children as young as 5 years old can claim them as well. This provision also extends to domestic partners or spouses who live together and share expenses: They can receive worker’s compensation rides if one of their partners suffers an accident on the job.
Workers’ compensation does not apply to non-employee injuries like accidents that happen outside of work hours or off the property of your employer.
How to apply for benefits
Workers’ compensation benefits are designed to be immediate. You should submit your claim as soon as possible, and the sooner you do, the more likely you are to receive benefits fairly quickly.
You will need to provide your employer’s name (the company who employs you), the date of injury, injury description, and medical bills or invoices related to your injury.
Be sure to include any evidence that supports your claim like pictures of the injuries sustained. If possible, show how long it took for you to recover from the accident (time line).
Workers’ compensation is a mandatory insurance taken out by employers to provide financial protection for employees who are injured on the job, or for their dependents after they die. The goal of the law is to reduce the number of work-related injuries and deaths, especially in high-risk professions like construction, mining, and truck driving. Workers’ compensation benefits are vital when it comes to long-term rehabilitation, lost wages, medical bills, emotional distress, PTSD treatment, and other expenses related to your injury. You can find more at cwilc.com – we’re always happy to help answer questions about our services and hear from those who are interested in learning more about what it means to have a Workers Compensation policy in place.