Bensalem Workers’ Compensation Lawyer

The path to recovery can seem daunting after suffering a workplace injury. You may be incurring costly medical bills well into the future. Furthermore, your injury may seriously affect your ability to work and earn income.

Fortunately, Workers’ Compensation insurance offers benefits to employees who are hurt on the job. These benefits may reimburse you for both medical bills and lost wages related to your on-the-job injury. Support from our legal team can be invaluable when navigating the claims process and fighting for the payment you are owed.

Get help from our experienced Workers’ Compensation attorneys at Cardamone Law by calling (267) 651-7945.

What Benefits Can I Get from Workers’ Comp?

After a work injury, Workers’ Compensation is supposed to pay three main areas of benefits. If you are filing for a loved one who died, there are death benefits your family can claim instead.

Medical Benefits

All medical care to treat a work injury should be covered. Your employer’s Workers’ Comp insurance usually covers emergency treatment for all injuries, regardless of how disabling they are. Some workplaces also have on-site nurses or staff to treat injuries, but if you need to go to the hospital, they should cover that as well.

Many disabling, long-term injuries require additional care. This means covering follow-up appointments, surgeries, physical therapy, rehabilitation, and even mental health therapy or psychiatry.

In the first 90 days, your care providers must come from a list of at least six provided by your employer. If you need a specialist or want a second opinion about surgery, you can go off the list. However, surgery still needs to be provided by a listed doctor.

After 90 days, you can choose your own care providers. Care should be covered as long as it is prescribed by your provider and carried out by a licensed provider. This can get things like chiropractic care and acupuncture covered as well as more typical medical therapies.

Workers’ Comp usually reimburses any initial outstanding expenses, then pays for care directly as you receive it. With medical marijuana for a work injury, costs might be reimbursed rather than paid directly by the insurance.

Wage-Loss Benefits

If you miss more than 7 days of work, you get replacement wages. If your disability lasts over 21 days, the first week is paid retroactively. Payments usually come on a weekly or bi-weekly basis to match how you got paid before the injury.

For total disabilities, wages typically equal 2/3 of your average weekly wage (AWW) before the injury. The statewide AWW is set by law each year and functions as a maximum weekly rate. For 2025, this is $1,347 per week.

If your benefit would be under half that amount – $673.50 – then you get that amount instead. If you have very low wages such that 90% of your wage is less than half the statewide AWW, you receive 90% of your wage instead.

If you have a partial disability and can work with modifications or accommodations, you get 2/3 of the difference in wages. This means subtracting your current reduced wage from your pre-injury AWW and multiplying by 2/3 to find your benefit rate.

Workers can switch between partial and total disability as their injury heals or gets worse. Doctor’s orders about work abilities and accommodations usually dictate your status, but our Workers’ Compensation lawyers can challenge this in court with outside second opinions.

Specific Loss Benefits

If you faced a permanent injury, amputation, or total loss of function, you receive benefits set by statute. These benefits also cover lost hearing, lost vision, and serious facial scars.

The Workers’ Comp Act lists specific injuries with a number of weeks assigned to each. These benefits pay 2/3 of your AWW for that listed number of weeks.

For example, a lost thumb pays 2/3 wages for 100 weeks, and loss of an eye pays 2/3 wages for 275 weeks. Each listed injury has its own number of weeks listed in the Act and rules for combinations (e.g., two lost fingers).

These benefits are paid on top of other benefits.

Death Benefits

If you lost a loved one, your family gets benefits instead, but they might be different than what the worker would have received.

As long as your family consists of their surviving spouse and at least two shared children, your family will receive the same 2/3 rate for lost earnings. With fewer family members or children by other parents, you might receive less. If the victim had no spouse, money is paid to their children’s current guardian for the children’s benefit.

Your family also gets a payment up to $7,000 paid to the undertaker for burial costs. Any costs for end-of-life care are also paid separately, usually to the hospital/care provider directly.

Claims for Injuries and Illness at Work in Bensalem

Workers’ Compensation usually covers “injuries.” These injuries can happen all at once in a specific accident or be repetitive stress injuries that happen over time. As long as the injuries occurred within the scope of your work or from dangerous conditions at your workplace, they should qualify.

A claim might instead involve work-acquired illnesses like cancer, asbestosis, silicosis, etc. These conditions might cause more complicated claims where you might even file with a former employer if your exposure happened years ago. Certain illnesses and conditions are listed in the statute, but other illnesses can be the basis of your claim if they are more common in your industry than in the population at large.

If you work for certain public employers or first responder organizations, you might get additional coverage for certain injuries. This is common for firefighters temporarily disabled by smoke inhalation or prison guards assaulted at work. This pays the rest of your lost wages (rather than 2/3) if you qualify.

Injuries Outside Your Workplace

Injuries are covered under Workers’ Compensation as long as they are work-related. This does not necessarily mean they have to happen at the office or at your work site, as long as they are part of your work tasks.

For example, commercial drivers and delivery drivers perform much of their job away from their office or base. As long as you are driving or making deliveries when the accident occurs, those injuries are still within the core tasks of your job.

The same is true for workers who move between multiple job sites in a day; as long as you are doing your job, injuries should qualify. This could affect painters, plumbers, and other trades workers.

Injuries during your work commute typically do not qualify for benefits. However, that typically only blocks coverage for your commute in and out of work. Accidents while driving between job sites or while going on work errands should qualify. Similarly, if you are diverted during your commute on a request to run a work-related errand, that trip now becomes work-related.

Work injuries can also happen off-site during training retreats, meetings, conferences, etc. If you are injured during one of these trips or at one of these locations, the injury is likely still work-related.

Common Sources of Work Injuries in Bensalem, PA

On-the-job accidents can arise in different forms. If you suffered any of the following while performing duties at work, then our Certified Pennsylvania Workers’ Compensation Specialists can assess the strength of your potential claim:

Slip and Fall Accidents

A very high number of workers are injured each year in Bensalem as the result of slip and fall accidents. These accidents can occur in many different types of workplace environments. For instance, slip and falls may occur on construction sites, in office buildings, in retail stores, and in manufacturing facilities.

Workplace slip and fall accidents are often caused by dangerous hazards like improper lighting or slippery floors. In many cases, victims suffer serious injuries, such as broken bones and torn ligaments.

Vehicle Collisions

Work-related vehicle collisions are frequently suffered by long-haul truck drivers, delivery drivers, and operators of construction equipment. These types of accidents have a high propensity to cause severe harm. For instance, many victims of on-the-job vehicle collisions sustain head injuries, broken bones, and spinal cord damage.

Electrocutions

Workers may suffer electrocutions when they come into contact with live wires or improperly grounded equipment. The injuries caused by electrocutions can be excruciatingly painful and debilitating.

As an example, some workers who suffer electrocutions will sustain neurological damage and respiratory issues. Moreover, those who work from tall heights may fall and suffer devastating injuries as a result of their electrocutions.

Overexertion

Many work-related injuries stem from overexertion. Tasks like that involve lifting, pushing, or pulling heavy objects are likely to cause muscle strains. In severe cases, these tasks may even cause workers to sustain spinal cord damage.

Employers should provide opportunities for rest breaks to mitigate the risk of overexertion injuries among their workers. Unfortunately, many employers neglect this obligation.

Repetitive Motions

Repetitive motion injuries are injuries that develop gradually over time as workers engage in repetitious movements or awkward postures. Workers in industries such as assembly line manufacturing, data entry, and food processing are especially prone to suffering these injuries.

Examples of repetitive motion injuries include bursitis, carpal tunnel syndrome, and tendonitis. Each of these injuries can produce detrimental impacts on victims’ abilities to work.

Machinery Accidents

Lastly, employees who work with heavy machinery or equipment face the risk of machinery accidents. These accidents may occur as the result of improper maintenance or poor training. Further, some machinery accidents happen because devices are not equipped with proper guarding.

Many machinery accidents result in catastrophic injuries like crush injuries, amputations, and internal organ damage.

Can You Recover Workers’ Compensation Benefits if You Caused Your Workplace Accident in Bensalem?

Workers’ Compensation benefits are available regardless of fault. This means that you may obtain these benefits even if you are the one who caused your workplace accident. Still, there many reasons that employers and their insurers may deny injured employees’ claims.

During the process for pursing payment, support from our team can be crucial. To ensure that your rights are protected, we will handle all communications with the insurance company. Moreover, if they attempt to reject your claim, we will help assert your case and fight for the financial compensation you deserve.

Steps to Take After Suffering a Work-Related Injury in Bensalem, PA

There are specific steps you can take in the aftermath of your workplace accident to help your recovery and improve your chances of recovering Workers’ Compensation benefits.

First, you have to report your injury to your employer quickly. Under § 311 of the Pennsylvania Workers’ Comp Act, you have to let your employer know about your on-the-job injury within 120 days of its occurrence. Failure to adhere to this deadline can result in the denial of your benefits.

Furthermore, you must seek medical treatment as soon as you can. You must have a doctor document your injuries before you obtain payment through Workers’ Compensation. If you wait for your injuries to heal on their own, then obtaining this documentation can be a difficult task.

Finally, you should contact our team. Our legal professionals have experience navigating the Workers’ Compensation system. We can make sure you follow the correct process for filing a successful claim. Further, we can advocate fiercely on your behalf so that you may obtain the full range of benefits you deserve.

Workers’ Compensation Appeals Process in Bensalem, PA

The denial of a Workers’ Compensation claim can be a disheartening setback. However, it is important to understand that a denied claim doesn’t necessarily mark the end of the road.

The appeals process is a procedure for the denial of benefits. It typically involves submitting a formal appeal within a specified time frame and providing additional evidence to support your case. The case may then proceed to administrative hearings or mediation sessions, where it is presented before a judge or mediator.

Our team is prepared to offer thorough support during each step of the appeals process. We will answer all of your questions and ensure that your paperwork is filed on time. We can also gather additional evidence needed to support your claim.

Contact Our Law Firm for Help After Suffering a Work-Related Accident in Bensalem, PA

If you suffered an injury on the job in Bensalem, seek guidance from our experienced Workers’ Compensation attorneys at Cardamone Law by dialing (267) 651-7945.