Ruining an L&I claim is easy. L&I makes this happen every day.
Don’t let L&I ruin your claim. Learn from the injured workers who have come before you. Learn from the mistakes of others, and keep your L&I claim healthy.
- IME – IME’s ruin more claims than any other L&I trick. The independent medical exam is a report produced by a doctor who sees you one time for the purpose of assessing your claim and answering questions. That sounds innocent enough, but it is not. Be careful of independent medical exams. Most of them are set up by claims managers whose interests are different than yours. These claims managers are looking for opinions that deny medical care, close your case, and give you less settlement then you deserve. Many IME doctors are happy to oblige them. When somebody orders an independent medical exam in your case, watch out. Learn More About IME’s.
- Self-insured employers – If your employer is self-insured, watch out. Employers self insure to save money. The way they save money is to not pay it to injured workers. Their tactics include suppressing claims, harassing injured workers, not paying benefits, slashing benefits, delaying benefits, withholding file information, and doing unfair surveillance films. If your employer is self insured you are at a disadvantage. Learn More About How to Deal with Self Insured Employers
- Not doing enough to get yourself a pension could ruin your claim and your financial situation for the rest of your life. If you will never work again because of your injury, you may qualify for an L&I pension. Many persons qualify; but few are chosen. Getting a pension requires tenacity, an understanding of the system, persistence, a helpful vocational counselor, a savvy attending physician, the ability to articulate your position, faith, and the reserve to wait them out while they try and starve you. Is it worth the effort? A typical PPD settlement can be worth between $2,000 and $20,000. Many pensions are worth over $500,000. It is worth the effort! If you qualify for a pension, do enough to get one. See PENSIONS.
- Letting a vocational rehabilitation counselor (VRC) decide your working future is a mistake. You wouldn’t go into a restaurant and let someone else decide what you eat. Likewise you shouldn’t let some counselor, without input from you, decide your working future. Get involved. Know the vocational rules. Help design your vocational plan. Get trained and get a good job. For helpful information see : L&I Vocational Training – The Ultimate Guide
- Getting on the wrong side of a Claims Manager. Claims managers have a lot of power over your claim. Some of them are good persons; others not so much. Bad claims managers will drive you crazy. All claims managers are overworked. Don’t be rude or mean, or get on their bad side. It’s best to treat each other politely, with dignity and respect. Do cooperate as required, but be smart about it. Do give them information that will help your case. Don’t assume it’s their job to help you. It’s not. Make it easy for them to help you.
- Missing a deadline can ruin a claim. Every adverse order must be protested or appealed within 60 days. Vocational determinations must be disputed within 15 days. Injury claims must be filed within one year of the injury. Occupational disease cases should be filed within two years. Don’t miss an important deadline or it will ruin your day and your claim. Also don’t fail to understand the scope and impact of an order. For example, when a wage order sets your wages it often fails to include some very important items such as overtime, bonus, a second job, lost health care benefits, and the like. If you don’t protest or appeal, the wage order becomes final and you will be stuck with this low wage rate for many years.
- Comparing your case to someone else’s case is stinkin’ thinking. Comparing your case to anybody else’s, and thinking you will get similar results, is a mistake. You probably have different injuries, different doctors, different claims, different claims managers, different reactions, and different needs. You will get different results. What you get will often be the result of your injuries and how much work you put into your case, and it will have little to do with somebody else’s case.
- Not getting good legal advice soon enough – Not being smart about legal advice can ruin your claim. Claim consultations are free. You do not have to hire a lawyer to get a free claim consultation, just schedule a call. Don’t hire a lawyer if you don’t need one. Do hire a lawyer if you do need one. If your case has big problems or you don’t know what to do – then talk to a lawyer. Most workers compensation lawyers offer a free legal consultation so you can learn about your claim and figure out whether a lawyer is a good plan for your case. Do this early enough in your case to give the lawyer, if you do hire one, a chance to help you make smart moves. Lawyers are better at thinking and planning ahead than they are at cleaning up a mess you made because you waited too long. If you need an initial legal consultation to assess where you are at and what you can do, we’ll give you one – for free. CONTACT US.
- Choosing the wrong doctor – Choosing the wrong doctor can ruin your claim. Some doctors care and can really help. Some don’t. Let’s take the hypothetical example of Unlucky Joe and Smart Jerry. Unlucky Joe has a back injury and goes to see a doctor recommended by his employer. That doctor starts a claim, tells Unlucky Joe he’ll get better soon, gives him some drugs, and sends him back to work too soon. Unlucky Joe re-injures his back. That doctor’s report is later used to close the claim and cut off Unlucky Joe’s benefits. Smart Jerry knew enough to choose his own doctor and he got a good one. That doctor recognized there might be a problem and ordered diagnostic tests to include an MRI. The MRI showed a major back problem. That doctor helped Smart Jerry get the specialized medical care he needed to get a good result in his workers’ compensation case. Unlucky Joe, Smart Jerry could well have had exactly the same injury; but their choice of doctors made all the difference. For more information see MEDICAL CARE.
- Not understanding or recognizing depression and how it can ruin your claim. If you have a serious injury and are out of work, out of money, unable to function as you would like to, and are in the dark about your rights; then you are probably depressed. Most people don’t want to know that they are depressed, and won’t admit it even if they do know. Depression has a lot of symptoms, among them is a tendency to sit around and do little or nothing about your problems. Unrecognized and untreated depression can ruin your case because you sit around feeling sorry for yourself while they stick it to you. Get it together, see L&I PPD Settlement Example
- Doing nothing to help yourself can ruin your claim. The Department of Labor & Industries or the self insured employer have an army of people working to process and close your claim. In many cases they are trying to short change you. If you do little to help your case, then you may get very little. Stand up, speak up, and increase your chances of getting a good result. Action cures fear. If you don’t know what to do, contact us for a free strategy session. We’ll tell you what your choices are, and what you should do. CONTACT US
