When it comes to filing for worker’s compensation, one of the most frustrating things that can happen is that your claim is denied. Often you aren’t given a reason why, which makes matters even more irritating. If you filed for worker’s compensation and the claim was denied, there are a few select reasons you can anticipate to explain the denial.
Failure to Notify Your Employer of the Injury in a Timely Manner
The sooner you notify your employer of a work injury, the better. In Minnesota, you have 14 days to report a work injury in order to qualify for worker’s compensation. However, the longer after the accident that you wait, the more suspicious you become. After all, you could have went home and exacerbated the injury on purpose in order to get compensation and time off.
Injury Occurred Outside of Work Hours
Obviously, if your injury didn’t happen at work, you won’t get worker’s compensation for it. However, there is some misconception that if you were at work, it still counts. For example, if you came in early to volunteer your services at your place of employment and got hurt, you will not be covered. You are only covered if you are clocked in or getting paid for your time, nothing extracurricular and off the clock counts as a work injury even it was on the premises.
Injury Occurred While You Were Under the Influence
It doesn’t matter how long you have worked at a company, how good of a job you do, or what type of work you do, if you are under the influence of alcohol or narcotics when you are injured, you should expect your claim to always be denied. You don’t need to be completely soused, even just a little bit of alcohol or illegal narcotics in your system is enough to be blamed for your injury. Even legal drugs like prescription drugs that were prescribed to you could be a large contributing factor in your denial.
Your Injuries Aren’t Serious Enough
Not all injuries qualify you for worker’s compensation, only the serious ones. If you got a scrap on the knee, you won’t be getting a settlement unless that scrap results in a permanent limp. An injury that qualifies for worker’s compensation is only one that prohibits you from completing your work duties. If you injure your back lifting boxes, but said pain clears up in about a week, your claim is likely going to be denied since you can return to work.
Your Employer Disputes the Claim
What many employees don’t realize is that their employer has the right to dispute an injury claim if they think it is fraudulent. Most commonly, an employer will dispute the claim if they believe that your work injury was actually a pre-existing condition or that your injury was otherwise faked. Just as an employer is responsible for proving you faked your injury, so, too, is the employee responsible for proving the legitimacy of their injury. However, both sides are better done with representation by a lawyer when going before the Worker’s Compensation Board.
If any of the above is happening in your worker’s compensation claim, then it will likely be very difficult, if not impossible, to get it approved. However, if you think your injury entitles you to compensation, you should never give up hope. If you are trying to file a worker’s compensation claim in the St. Paul area, contact us today. The Law Office of Joshua Borkin can provide the insight into your claim to see if you have a chance of getting it approved or if it is a completely lost cause.