How to Maximize Your NJ Work Injury Settlement

All Practice Areas

If you suffer injuries on the job, you may incur financial losses such as medical expenses and lost wages. Fortunately, workers’ compensation can provide you with benefits to help with your expenses and losses. Depending on the circumstances of your work injury, you may have the option of negotiating a workers’ compensation settlement with your employer.

Here are a few tips to follow to help maximize your NJ work injury settlement. 

Report Your Injury

First, you should remember to report your work injury to your employer as soon as possible. Ideally, you should notify your employer no later than 14 days after the date you were injured, although you have up to 90 days to file a report with your employer. However, providing your employer with notice of your injury later during this 90-day period may impact the amount of benefits you may be entitled to.

You should preferably provide your employer with written notice of your injury so that you have a record that you gave notice. Your employer may have claim paperwork for you to fill out for their workers’ compensation insurer. 

Seek Prompt Medical Attention

You should also seek immediate medical attention after suffering a work injury. While you may want to wait a few days to see if your injuries heal quickly, prompt medical attention will help document your injuries and connect them to your work. In New Jersey, your employer has the right to select providers for treatment of your work injuries if you want the costs of your care covered by workers’ compensation, although you can seek emergency care from any provider of your choice.

Understand Your Workers’ Compensation Benefits

You should also familiarize yourself with the benefits available from the workers’ compensation system. These benefits include:

• Medical benefits: Pays for all reasonable and necessary treatment, including pain management care, for a work injury or occupational illness.
• Temporary disability benefits: Provides partial replacement of your average weekly wage for each day that you miss from work.
• Permanent partial disability benefits: Provides financial payments based on the type and severity of permanent disability or impairment you are diagnosed with after your work injury reaches maximum medical improvement.
• Permanent total disability benefits: Continues partial wage replacement benefits for as long as you remain unable to work due to your injury. 

Avoid Giving a Recorded Statement

You may jeopardize your right to a full and fair work injury settlement by agreeing to provide a recorded statement for the workers’ compensation insurer. Insurance adjusters are trained to ask questions to injury victims in such a way as to get them to say things that can later be used to undercut their workers’ compensation claim. For example, adjusters may ask about pre-existing injuries or medical conditions, prior accidents you were involved in, how your work injury occurred, or how you are feeling. The insurer may try to use your answers to argue that you have recovered from your work injury or that your claimed injury was not work-related

Hire a Workers’ Compensation Lawyer

Finally, you should retain a workers’ compensation lawyer, as they will have experience negotiating work injury settlements and can help you maximize your financial recovery. 

Contact a Rochelle Park Workers’ Compensation Lawyer to Discuss Your New Jersey Workplace Injury Case

A workplace injury can be devastating, particularly if it prevents you from returning to work for an extended period of time. Although New Jersey Workers’ Compensation laws are supposed to provide you with reimbursement for medical expenses and replacement pay for missed time at work, it is not always easy to get the Workers’ Comp benefits you deserve. That is why you should speak with a knowledgeable Workers’ Compensation lawyer about your situation and get guidance throughout the claims process. The experienced Workers’ Compensation attorneys at the Epstein Law Firm, P.A. represent clients in Mahwah, Paramus, Ridgewood, Englewood, and all across New Jersey. Call (201) 380-7687 or fill out our online contact form today to schedule a free consultation about your work injury case. Our main office is located at 340 West Passaic Street, Rochelle Park, NJ 07662.

The articles on this blog are for informative purposes only and are no substitute for legal advice or an attorney-client relationship. If you are seeking legal advice, please contact our law firm directly.