Hurt On The Road And Need Workers' Compensation: What To Know
Workers' compensation insurance covers workers that get hurt while performing their job duties. Those duties, though, can happen in more than just the main workplace. Some workers must travel away from the worksite to perform their duties and sometimes, those workers are hurt while doing so. This sort of situation can present some tricky issues when it comes to being covered under workers' compensation insurance. Read on to find out more.
Was It Work-Related?
There are plenty of unknowns when it comes to workers' compensation insurance. While most injuries are covered, some workers have trouble proving that their injury was work-related. When it comes to injuries while traveling, the insurer could reject a claim based on a lack of evidence. They may say that they need more proof that the accident or illness is directly related to the job. In most cases, that means the hurt worker needs corroboration. Some examples of corroboration that might be beneficial include,
- Eyewitnesses, such as coworkers or others who can provide a statement attesting to what they saw.
- Photographs of the accident scene. For example, if you are helping to set up a display for a convention and part of the display collapsed and hurt you, photos of the collapsed display should be provided.
- Video footage, if available.
- Medical treatment records.
What Might Not Be Covered
It can be difficult to know what may or may not be covered when it comes to off-site work injuries. The following situations, for example, may result in denials of coverage.
- The worker is working out in the hotel gym and is hurt. That would not be covered under workers' compensation, but they could investigate being paid compensation from the hotel if the equipment was faulty.
- The worker gets food poisoning from a restaurant. Even if the tab was being picked up by the employer, it's probably not covered by workers' compensation.
- A worker is involved in a vehicle accident while traveling to an off-site training session. If the worker is using a company car, it may be covered. However, this situation calls for more help from a workers' compensation lawyer.
What to Do
How you handle the situation immediately after the accident will greatly affect your claim. The first thing you should do is seek medical treatment right away and inform the medical personnel that the injury was work-related. Next, you should phone your supervisor and report the injury. Follow their instructions for filing a claim. Then, you should preserve and capture any evidence you can as soon as you can. If you cannot gather the evidence because of your injury, get someone else to assist you. Finally, you need to contact a workers' compensation lawyer because these types of work injuries are more challenging to prove than others. The lawyer will make sure you receive the benefits you deserve.
For more information, contact a workers' compensation lawyer.