medical stethoscope with workers hard hat

Injured at Work? Immediate Steps

Read­ing Time: 4 min­utes

Last Updat­ed on June 26, 2023 

Did you get injured at work? You need to take imme­di­ate steps to attend to your med­ical needs and pro­tect your legal rights. If you have ques­tions on what to do next, you can get FREE Con­sult with one of our Work­ers’ Comp Lawyers at 844–682‑0999.

Injured at Job? Immediate Steps You MUST to Protect Your Rights

  1. See a Work­ers’ Comp Doc­tor or an Emer­gency Facil­i­ty — You must get your injury diag­nosed and treat­ed as soon as pos­si­ble. Prop­er doc­u­men­ta­tion of your injury is nec­es­sary for your work­ers’ com­pen­sa­tion claim.
  2. Noti­fy Your Employ­er — Next, you must noti­fy your employ­er. Some states don’t require writ­ten notice, but is best to noti­fy your employ­er / super­vi­sor by text or email. Do not delay. Texas allows max­i­mum of 30 days after a work relat­ed injury for employ­er notification.
  3. Keep a Wit­ness List — Keep a list of any­one who was present for the acci­dent. Wit­ness­es play a major role if your case goes for a tri­al or if there is any dis­pute about your claim.
  4. File Your Injury Claim On Time — Your employ­er should pro­vide you the insur­ance forms to file a claim direct­ly with the car­ri­er. It is pos­si­ble your car­ri­er / local work­ers’ com­pen­sa­tion state agency may have addi­tion­al forms. Be sure to file all forms. Check and dou­ble check !
  5. Take Advice from local Lawyer — This is not a must item. But a good Work­ers Comp Lawyer does not cost you direct­ly. They will pro­tect your rights. They do not con­tact your employ­er. They work with insur­ance car­ri­er and doc­tors direct­ly and rep­re­sent your case before the state work­ers’ comp agency / court. The con­tin­gency fee they charge far exceeds the ben­e­fits they deliver.
  6. Do not dis­cuss the acci­dent with any­one oth­er than your super­vi­sor, man­ag­er, or the attor­ney. This includes co-work­ers, friends, and fam­i­ly. Any­thing you say could be used against you in a work­ers’ com­pen­sa­tion claim or lawsuit.
  7. Be patient and per­sis­tent. The work­ers’ com­pen­sa­tion process can be long and com­pli­cat­ed. Be patient and per­sis­tent in pur­su­ing your claim.
  8. Be coop­er­a­tive. It is impor­tant to be coop­er­a­tive with your employ­er and the work­ers’ com­pen­sa­tion insur­ance com­pa­ny. This will help to ensure that your claim is processed smoothly.
  9. Do not give up. If you are denied ben­e­fits, you may be able to appeal the deci­sion. With the help of an attor­ney, you may be able to get the ben­e­fits you deserve.
  10. Take notes about what hap­pened. This includes the date, time, and loca­tion of the acci­dent, as well as what hap­pened lead­ing up to and after the accident.
  11. If pos­si­ble, take pic­tures of the scene of the accident.
  12. Keep any doc­u­men­ta­tion relat­ed to your injury, such as med­ical bills, pre­scrip­tions, and lost wages.
  13. Get help if you need it. If you are strug­gling to cope with the emo­tion­al or finan­cial impact of your injury, there are resources avail­able to help you. You may want to con­sid­er talk­ing to a ther­a­pist or coun­selor, or join­ing a sup­port group.
  14. Your state’s work­ers’ com­pen­sa­tion web­site. This web­site will pro­vide infor­ma­tion about the work­ers’ com­pen­sa­tion laws in your state.
  15. Be aware of the statute of lim­i­ta­tions for fil­ing a work­ers’ com­pen­sa­tion claim. This is the time lim­it in which you must file a claim. If you miss the dead­line, you may be barred from fil­ing a claim.

If you have been injured at work, it is important to get help as soon as possible. An experienced workers’ compensation lawyer can help you understand your rights and options and fight for the benefits you deserve.

Frequently Asked Questions About Workplace Injury

What should I do if I’m injured at work?

Your imme­di­ate pri­or­i­ty should be your safe­ty and well-being. Report the injury to your super­vi­sor or man­ag­er, seek med­ical atten­tion if need­ed, and fol­low your com­pa­ny’s pro­ce­dures for report­ing work­place injuries.

Do I need to notify my employer about my work-related injury?

Yes, it is cru­cial to noti­fy your employ­er about your work-relat­ed injury as soon as pos­si­ble. Inform them of the details of the inci­dent and pro­vide any nec­es­sary doc­u­men­ta­tion or forms they require.

Should I seek medical treatment for my work-related injury?

Yes, it’s impor­tant to seek med­ical treat­ment for your work-relat­ed injury, even if the injury seems minor. Prompt med­ical eval­u­a­tion can ensure prop­er diag­no­sis, treat­ment, and doc­u­men­ta­tion of your injury, which is essen­tial for your work­ers’ com­pen­sa­tion claim.

How long do I have to report my work-related injury to my employer?

The time­frame for report­ing a work-relat­ed injury varies by juris­dic­tion and com­pa­ny pol­i­cy. How­ev­er, it’s best to report the injury as soon as pos­si­ble to ensure com­pli­ance with any applic­a­ble deadlines.

What information should I provide when reporting my work-related injury?

When report­ing your work-relat­ed injury, pro­vide detailed infor­ma­tion about the inci­dent, includ­ing the date, time, loca­tion, and cir­cum­stances of the injury. Be pre­pared to pro­vide wit­ness state­ments, if available.

Do I need to complete any forms for my workers’ compensation claim?

Your employ­er or their work­ers’ com­pen­sa­tion rep­re­sen­ta­tive will pro­vide you with the nec­es­sary forms to ini­ti­ate your work­ers’ com­pen­sa­tion claim. Fill out these forms accu­rate­ly and pro­vide any addi­tion­al doc­u­men­ta­tion required.

Should I keep records of my medical treatment and expenses?

Yes, it’s impor­tant to keep records of all med­ical treat­ment, includ­ing doc­tor’s vis­its, diag­nos­tic tests, pre­scrip­tions, and any relat­ed expens­es. These records will be valu­able in sup­port­ing your work­ers’ com­pen­sa­tion claim.

What should I do if my employer disputes my claim or denies my benefits?

If your claim is dis­put­ed or denied, it’s advis­able to seek legal advice from an attor­ney expe­ri­enced in work­ers’ com­pen­sa­tion law. They can guide you through the appeals process and pro­tect your rights.

Can I choose my own doctor for my work-related injury?

The rules regard­ing the choice of a doc­tor for a work-relat­ed injury vary depend­ing on the juris­dic­tion and work­ers’ com­pen­sa­tion laws. Famil­iar­ize your­self with your juris­dic­tion’s guide­lines to deter­mine whether you have the free­dom to choose your own doctor.

Will I receive compensation for my time off work due to a work-related injury?

If your injury caus­es you to miss work, you may be eli­gi­ble for wage replace­ment ben­e­fits under work­ers’ com­pen­sa­tion. The spe­cif­ic com­pen­sa­tion and eli­gi­bil­i­ty cri­te­ria vary by juris­dic­tion and the nature of your injury.

Remem­ber that employ­er respon­si­bil­i­ties can vary based on juris­dic­tion and indus­try-spe­cif­ic reg­u­la­tions. It’s impor­tant for injured work­ers’ to con­sult the spe­cif­ic laws and reg­u­la­tions applic­a­ble to their loca­tion and indus­try to ensure com­pli­ance with their oblig­a­tions. You should always con­sult an expe­ri­enced Work­ers Comp Lawyer.

Why do I need a Workers’ Comp Lawyer?

injured Construction worker

If you have been injured at work, it is impor­tant to speak with an expe­ri­enced Work­ers’ Comp Lawyer as soon as pos­si­ble. They can help you under­stand your rights and get the ben­e­fits you deserve.

A Work­ers’ Comp Lawyer’s rep­re­sen­ta­tion, depend­ing on the sit­u­a­tion may include the following:

  • File a claim peti­tion: A Work­ers’ Comp Lawyer can file a claim peti­tion on your behalf to get you all the ben­e­fits you are enti­tled to. This includes wage replace­ment, med­ical expens­es, and oth­er benefits.
  • Block employer’s insur­ance company’s attempt to ter­mi­nate or sus­pend your wage / comp ben­e­fits: If your employ­er’s insur­ance com­pa­ny tries to ter­mi­nate or sus­pend your ben­e­fits, a Work­ers’ Comp Lawyer can help you fight back.
  • Ensure your work relat­ed injury med­ical bills are paid: A Work­ers’ Comp Lawyer can make sure that your work-relat­ed med­ical bills are paid by your employ­er’s insur­ance company.
  • Pre­pare and present your case in court, if nec­es­sary: If your case goes to court, a Work­ers’ Comp Lawyer can pre­pare and present your case for you.
  • Sup­port your med­ical claims through your doc­tor, if nec­es­sary: A Work­ers’ Comp Lawyer can work with your doc­tor to sup­port your med­ical claims and make sure that you are get­ting the treat­ment you need for your work­place injury.
  • Cross-exam­ine insur­ance med­ical expert dur­ing tri­al, if nec­es­sary: If your case goes to tri­al, a Work­ers’ Comp Lawyer can cross-exam­ine the insur­ance com­pa­ny’s med­ical expert.
  • Set­tle your Work­ers Com­pen­sa­tion claim for a lump sum amount, in con­sul­ta­tion with you: A Work­ers’ Comp Lawyer can nego­ti­ate a set­tle­ment for your Work­ers’ Com­pen­sa­tion claim, and they can help you under­stand all of your options.

Injured at Work? Get Legal Help & Protect Your Rights, Benefits & Compensation — Call 844–682‑0999.