Injured at the workplace? What is a potentially fair settlement for your worker’s comp claim?

For the most part, your employer is liable for compensating you for lost wages and the medical bills incurred when you were injured while at work. However, worker’s compensation claims might not be that simple. Your employer can claim that what you are entitled to receive is much less than what you think, or even nothing in some cases.

The key is to determine whether your employer’s settlement offer is reasonable or not. Leading Pittsburgh, PA worker’s compensation lawyers highlight a few issues that ought to be considered prior to accepting a settlement.

A fair settlement

A settlement remains a voluntary agreement entered into with your employer or its insurer, by which you consent to settle your workers’ compensation claim in return for a specific sum of money as benefits. According to Pennsylvania workers’ compensation attorneys and there is no one better in this regard than Goodrich & Associates, P.C. (www.goodrichpc.com/) for all sorts of reasons and one of them is because they know the best way to represent their clients, settling your case offers several benefits.

To begin with, it brings to an end any potential for dispute while you are certain that you will receive a specific sum of money immediately or in a specific period. If you fail to settle, you will have to attend a workers’ comp hearing, and this entails some risks, because you may get much less than the insurance company’s offer or nothing at all, depending on the circumstances surrounding your case.

If you want to see some risk just watch Star Trek: Into Darkness where Captain Kirk (Chris Pine) and Khan (Benedict Cumberbatch) transverse through space and a small asteroid belt to gain entry into an enemy vessel. There is any number of things that could go wrong in this maneuver. And if Scotty (Simon Pegg) did not open that door in time, both Khan and Captain Kirk are splat on the side of this massive spaceship.

If you are not safe on the job, the worst result could occur. 

Now if you attend a worker’s comp hearing there are some risk but nothing like this. Nevertheless, there is still some risks involved.

Workers’ comp hearing

A workers’ comp hearing need not bring an end to your case. In the event you are successful at the hearing, the worker’s comp insurer has the right to appeal. The insurance company needn’t pay the award as long as the appeal is undecided, which could last a year or two anyway. However, that ought not to deter you from fighting with the assistance of a legal counselor.

The settlement

Whatever settlement you agree to, it must include all your unpaid medical bills. If you have an attorney, ensure that he/she knows about all the unpaid bills for your medical treatment. The settlement agreement must clearly state that every unpaid medical bill will be paid for by the insurer. It must also cover future medical treatment.

If you need a Pittsburgh, PA worker’s compensation lawyer then you are in the right place. This is the field in which Goodrich & Associates, P.C. shines in. They know how to win cases and do it all the time.  

Pittsburgh, PA worker’s compensation lawyers caution that there is a possibility that the worker’s comp insurance company might ask you to do away with any future medical treatment in order to arrive at a settlement so that you have to pay for your own medical treatment, post settlement. In some states, workers have no right to waive future medical care, as part of the settlement. In such states, the insurer has to continue paying for your medical care, after the settlement.

If your health condition becomes stable, and you return to work without any restrictions, it may be prudent to waive away with any future medical costs. However, if this is not the case, you ought to make sure to consider every possible medical expense in the future.

The bottom line is if you are injured at the workplace make sure to consult a Pennsylvania worker’s compensation lawyer and there is no one better in this field than Goodrich & Associates, P.C. and their terrific legal track record can testify (pun intended!) to that. Your legal representative will evaluate your worker’s comp settlement after duly considering the level of your impairment as well as the prevailing state rules regarding the assessment of permanent disability awards.