When you get hurt at work, you may wonder how you will make ends meet. Who will pay your bills? How will you support your family? Fortunately, Louisiana law allows employees to receive workers’ compensation benefits. These benefits help pay for medical bills and a portion of lost wages after suffering a work-related injury. To receive these benefits, injured workers must file a workers’ comp claim within a certain amount of time. If you fail to file this claim on-time, you could lose your ability to collect benefits.
Collecting Benefits After a Work Injury
In 2018, workers’ compensation insurance claims paid more than $48 billion in premiums to injured workers. This was a 7.3 percent increase from the previous year.
In Louisiana, there are three basic kinds of workers’ comp benefits. Employees may recover:
- Indemnity benefits. Indemnity benefits is another term for payments for your lost wages. You may recover about two-thirds of your lost wages, up to a limit.
- Medical benefits. Medical benefits pay for the medical expenses that resulted from your injury.
- Vocational benefits. Vocational benefits are services to help you find another job if your injury prevents you from staying at your current job.
How Long Do You Have to File a Workers’ Comp Claim?
You must report your injury to your employer to get your workers’ comp claim started. You have 30 days from the date of the accident to report your injury. If you do not meet this deadline, you may lose your chance to file a workers’ comp claim.
After you inform your employer of your injury, it is their responsibility to submit an official report with the Louisiana Office of Workers’ Compensation.
There are other time limits for filing a workers’ comp claim too. These other time limits may depend on whether you have received prior benefits and the types of benefits you may be entitled to for an injury.
There are too many variables that go into workers’ comp statute of limitations to suggest specific deadlines with certainty. Your deadlines may be specific to your unique situation. That is one reason why it is important to work with a workers’ comp attorney that knows the Louisiana Workers’ Comp Act.
Our attorneys can keep track of important deadlines for you. Missing a deadline could cost you your chance at obtaining the benefits you deserve. We make sure that our clients’ claims stay in the forefront and keep them from getting lost in the shuffle.
How Can Your Workers’ Compensation Attorneys Help Me?
Collecting workers’ compensation is not easy. Even though you have a valid injury and claim, it is often difficult to collect the benefits you need. When you suffer a work-related injury, you need a law firm on your side that can fight for your rights. Your lawyer can review your accident and injuries to determine if you have a workers’ comp claim.
At Mitchell & Associates, APLC, our workers’ comp lawyers can make sure you do not miss any critical deadlines. We are here to help after a work accident. We want you to get the benefits you deserve.
We know that you may have questions about your work injury, benefits, or filing a workers’ compensation claim. That is why we offer help every step of the way. Call us at 504-527-6433 or fill out our confidential contact form for a free initial consultation. With offices in New Orleans and Baton Rouge, we are here when you need us most.
