If you are injured or become ill as a result of your job, you may be entitled to Workers’ Compensation benefits. To file a claim, the first steps are to seek medical care and notify your employer that an injury or illness occurred. This must be done within 30 days or your claim may be rejected. If your injury or illness is an emergency, you should seek medical care immediately. A notification of the injury or illness to your employer should be made in writing, and you should keep a copy of any accident report completed.
Seeking medical care is critical to your Workers’ Compensation claim. This not only provides you with the appropriate medical treatment; it also provides documentation of your injury. When reporting your injury to a healthcare provider, you must inform the provider that your injury occurred at work and be clear about the nature and extent of your injuries. Unless you are experiencing an emergency, make sure that you take the time to choose a healthcare provider who is authorized by the Workers’ Compensation Board.
Once you have sought treatment for your injury, complete an Employee Claim form, also known as a C-3, and file it with the Workers’ Compensation Board. To complete this form, you will need basic employment information, such as your employer’s name and address, your rate of pay and date of hire, as well as a description of how the injury happened, the nature of the injury, and the body parts affected. You will also need to document where and when you sought medical care and whether you lost time from work.
These are the first critical steps in protecting your Workers’ Compensation claim. Mistakes made during these steps can be fatal to your claim. At MCV Law, we have assisted thousands of injured workers with filing their claims, and work closely with them to make sure their claims are handled appropriately. Our competent Workers’ Compensation team can guide you through this tough time in your life and ensure that you are getting all of the benefits that you are entitled to, so you can focus on your care and getting back to work.