12 Ways a Workers’ Comp Lawyer Will Alleviate the Stress
If you’ve been injured on the job, you are likely feeling stressed. This reason alone is why it’s important to hire a workers’ comp lawyer.
The State Board of Workers’ Compensation is much more complicated than it should be. When someone is injured at work, it shouldn’t take an extra college degree to understand how the system works, what paperwork to file, or when they will get their benefits. But it feels that way.
Dealing with workers’ compensation is stressful – especially for an employee who is injured and doesn’t know how they will afford medical treatment or pay their bills due to missing work.
Instead of trying to handle it all on your own, hire a workers’ comp lawyer to ease the stress.
Here are 12 ways that a workers’ comp lawyer will alleviate the stress.
A Workers’ Comp Lawyer Addresses the Emotional Toil
If you’ve been injured on the job, you are likely dealing with a lot of emotions.
You are physically hurt, but you may also feel emotionally hurt.
You are frustrated, confused, and angry trying to navigate the process and not getting answers from the insurance company as quickly as you’d like.
An experienced workers’ comp lawyer knows the emotional toll the process takes on an injured employee. The lawyer will make sure to ease the stress by recognizing what their client is going through and walking them through the process.
A Workers’ Comp Lawyer Guides You through the Process
From start to finish, workers’ compensation is complicated and frustrating.
There are multiple steps to take, forms to fill out, and decisions to be made.
A workers’ compensation attorney will explain each step of the process, so you don’t lose sleep wondering, “What’s next.”
A Workers’ Comp Lawyer Understands the Legal Ins and Outs
Workers’ compensation is determined by a specific branch of government (the Georgia State Board of Workers’ Compensation).
This specific branch of government can be overwhelming to navigate – even for people with a law degree.
However, those lawyers who specialize in workers’ compensation in Georgia understand the ins and outs of our state’s law.
We know the process like the back of our hands. Just like you know the minutiae of your job, a workers’ comp lawyer knows the smallest parts of the complicated process.
A Workers’ Comp Lawyer Protects You
In an ideal situation, if you were injured at work, the insurance company would simply give you the benefits you justly deserve.
Unfortunately, that’s not usually how it goes.
This is because the insurance company protects profits over people. They care more about saving money than giving money away.
Workers’ compensation lawyers protect you from these money-hungry insurance companies.
[Related Read: Top 11 Georgia Workers’ Comp Dos and Don’ts]
A Workers’ Comp Lawyer Handles the Awkward Communications
Your employer isn’t respecting your time out of the office? He keeps calling and asking when you’ll be back at work?
Let your lawyer handle it.
You are receiving phone calls from a nurse case manager who you’ve been told is on the insurance’s side? Tell her to contact your lawyer.
Have you had a conversation with an insurance adjuster? Would you describe it as a positive, helpful experience? No way! Let your lawyer do the talking. That’s why they’re there.
A Workers’ Comp Lawyer Files the Complicated Paperwork
The biggest legal headache of workers’ compensation is the paperwork.
Filing your worker’s comp claim requires a special form to be filed with the Georgia State Board of Workers’ Compensation.
Workers’ compensation law is very form-based, and it is easy for someone who does not have the experience to get the forms, their significance, and any filing deadlines confused.
A simple mistake like missing a deadline could result in missing out on compensation.
A workers’ comp lawyer will know which forms to file, how to appropriately complete them, and when to file them.
A Workers’ Comp Lawyer Knows the Right People
Unfortunately, you can’t trust every doctor.
For example, while you are required to see a doctor from your employer’s posted panel of physicians, your employer may push you to see a certain doctor on that list.
What you may not know is that this particular doctor is employer-friendly. This means he may be the type of doctor who pushes injured employees to return to work before they are ready. Why? Because he wants to stay in the employer’s and insurance company’s good graces.
A local workers’ compensation attorney will know which doctors are more or less ethical.
In addition, if you need a second opinion or other types of medical tests, your lawyer will be able to point you in the right direction.
A Workers’ Comp Lawyer Answers Your Questions
You will likely have many questions throughout the process of filing your claim and receiving your benefits.
Rather than trying to google and finding different answers, you can call or email your lawyer.
With some larger firms, you may speak with a paralegal or a case manager.
However, at DeMedeiros Injury Law, I take a more personal approach.
I try to make myself as available as possible to my clients, including phone calls, text messages, and video calls.
No question is a stupid question.
A Workers’ Comp Lawyer Helps You Avoid Making Mistakes
A simple mistake on paperwork can result in your workers’ compensation claim being denied.
It happens more often than you’d think.
But a workers’ compensation lawyer knows how important all the paperwork is, how to fill it out, and when to turn it in.
That’s not all.
If you don’t have an attorney, you may make the mistake of speaking with a nurse case manager or insurance adjuster who can later use what you say against you, possibly costing you your benefits.
Or you may not realize the insurance company is spying on you.
A workers’ comp attorney will tell you the dos and don’ts, so you don’t fall for any of the insurance company’s traps.
Check out Top 5 Workers’ Comp Mistakes.
A Workers’ Comp Lawyer Bolsters Your Claim
In the state of Georgia, you can receive workers’ compensation benefits even if you were at fault.
However, in order to qualify for workers’ compensation, you must have been injured at work.
Sometimes employers and insurance companies will try to fight your claim that you were injured at work. They may suggest the injury happened outside of work hours or that you weren’t hurt like you claim or as bad as you claim.
A workers’ compensation attorney can alleviate some fears of this happening because part of their job is gathering medical evidence to bolster your claim and taking depositions that support your claim.
A Workers’ Comp Lawyer Uses Firsthand Experience
Most likely, this is the first time you have had to deal with workers’ compensation.
That makes the experience even scarier.
But for an attorney that specializes in workers’ compensation, this is an everyday part of their job.
They are able to pull from their firsthand experience to help you get the benefits you deserve.
A Workers’ Comp Lawyer Fights for YOU
Last but not least, you can rest easy knowing your workers’ comp attorney is fighting for you.
With workers’ compensation, it feels like you have a lot of people against you – the insurance company, the insurance adjuster, your employer, the nurse case managers, and even the doctors.
If you are battling this army alone, it feels overwhelming.
With a workers’ compensation attorney, you are not alone. You have someone in your corner who knows the rights and wrongs of your specific claim and will not give up until you receive the benefits you are due.
Still not convinced you need a workers’ comp lawyer? Watch this video.
If you’ve been injured on the job, contact us today for a free, no-strings-attached consultation.
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