All employers in Virginia, with three or more employees, must carry workers’ compensation insurance. If you are unfortunately injured at work, you can seek compensation for your medical bills and lost wages by filing a workers’ compensation claim. This brings us to an important question – Do you need a lawyer? If filing a claim is so easy, why would pay for a lawyer in the first place? In this post, we are sharing the benefits of hiring a Virginia workers’ compensation lawyer.
- Get free case evaluation. One of the key reasons why you need an attorney is to get an assessment of your workers’ compensation claim. How much are your damages worth? What are the damages and losses you can recover? What if the employer has retaliated against you? Meet a lawyer, and in all likeliness, they won’t charge you for the first consultation.
- Complete the due claims process. Right after the accident, you should inform your employer, or supervisor, as soon as possible. Seek medical help, and you can choose a doctor you want. You must also report the injury and all relevant details to the employer within 30 days. Once you are feeling better, you have to initiate the workers’ compensation claims process. Besides your employer, you are also required to file the Claim form with Virginia Workers’ Compensation Commission. When you have an attorney, they will deal with all that.
- Negotiate with the insurance company. All insurers make money through premiums and not from settlements. This are businesses working for profit, and you cannot expect them to be empathetic to your health or condition. Contact an attorney, to negotiate the workers’ compensation claim. They can see through bad faith insurance tactics, and you don’t have to deal with the claims adjuster directly.
Tips for finding a good lawyer
Not all workers’ compensation lawyers are same, so do your homework before you select one. Firstly, ask the attorney about their work profile and what percentage of their practice is dedicated to workers’ compensation claims. Don’t shy away from asking for references, and you can also check online for independent reviews. Make sure that your attorney is accessible, and for selected workers’ compensation claims, a lawyer may work on a contingency basis. This means that the lawyer doesn’t get a fee, until and unless they win.
Check online now and find the best-rated workers’ compensation lawyers in your area in Virginia.
