When you get injured at work, you need to report it to your employer promptly. From there, the ball is in their court to report it to the state, to make a claim with their insurance carrier, and to get you the benefits you need. They might reject your claim, but what if they never even report it or file it in the first place?
Employers get 21 days to respond to your claim, during which they should report the injury to the government and file the claim with their insurance carrier. If they don’t, you can try reaching out to the insurance carrier directly for coverage. You can also file a Claim Petition in court and move ahead with the case as if your benefits had been denied.
Call our Certified Pennsylvania Worker’s Compensation Lawyers at Cardamone Law today for help with your case at (267) 651-7945.
Did I Give Notice Correctly?
If your employer has not responded to your claim or reported your injury, the first thing to worry about is whether you gave proper notice of your injury. This notice has to be filed within 21 days in an ordinary process, but you can still get benefits as long as you file notice within 120 days of the injury.
When you give your employer notice of your injury, it has to go to the right parties or people to accept this notice. That might require checking with HR or talking to your supervisor about how to give notice of an injury.
When you report the injury, there may be forms or questions from your employer, so make sure to fill them out in full and to give all details necessary to show the injury happened, it was work-related, and it disabled you.
If you have any questions about whether your injury report was made correctly, you can always work with our Pennsylvania Workers’ Compensation lawyers to ensure you did everything right on your end. If you did, then it’s up to your employer to take the next steps and report your injury and file the claim with insurance.
How Long Does My Employer Have to Respond?
Once you file your claim, the employer gets 21 days to respond by denying the claim or accepting it and paying benefits. Alternatively, they can buy themselves an extra 90 days to investigate further by temporarily accepting the claim and paying you until they make a decision.
In any case, this is a short turnaround time, and you should not be waiting for months before they get back to you. If they haven’t responded yet and 21 days have gone by, you can treat it as a denial and move forward on your own.
How Do I Know if My Employer Reported My Injury?
You can check with the insurance carrier directly if your employer is giving you the runaround or has not communicated with you since your notice of injury. In some cases, this can get the ball rolling and get your benefits turned on, at least on a temporary basis while they investigate for 90 more days.
You shouldn’t worry too much about whether your employer reported the injury to the state; that obligation is on them. You have time before any further steps are required by you.
Can I File a Claim Directly?
You can talk to the insurance company directly about getting coverage for your injury if your employer fails to do so, but it is possible they will say they need to get in touch with the employer before taking any further steps. If the employer gives them the runaround, too, then that isn’t going to advance your case.
The next step is to file a Claim Petition with the Workers’ Compensation Office of Adjudication within the Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry. This is the typical process for how to file a claim after your employer or their insurance carrier denies your claim, and the process works essentially the same as if the claim was denied.
How Long Do I Have to File?
As noted, your initial notice of injury needs to be delivered to your employer within 120 days or else you lose your right to benefits. However, typical rules see this notice come within 21 days of the injury.
You have 3 years from the injury to file your Claim Petition after a denial or ignored claim. However, you should not get near this deadline, and you should talk to a lawyer much sooner. This keeps evidence fresh and allows you to get benefits when you need them most: as soon as possible.
Do I Have to Report My Work Injury to the State?
After a work injury, you have enough to worry about: scheduling medical bills, dealing with everyday expenses without your income, and getting better so you can get back to your regular life. You do not need the additional worry of reporting your injury to the government.
The government tracks statistics on work injuries, and all work-related injuries should be reported to them. However, this is an obligation placed on employers, not workers.
Employer’s Obligations
Your employer should report deadly injuries within 48 hours and any injury resulting in disability between 7 and 10 days. Disability claims are not paid under Workers’ Comp until workers hit 7 days of disability, so this essentially gives employers 3 days to report an injury after it becomes reportable.
Your Obligations
Your responsibility is to report the injury to your employer, and they are the one who has to report it to the state. You should do this within 21 days, but you do have up to 120 days at the latest, as discussed above.
You also have obligations to continue treatment and work on your recovery, as refusing or delaying medical care could hurt your claim. You also have to use approved providers in the first 90 days to get that care covered, so check with your lawyer and employer about who those care providers are.
When to Call a Lawyer
You should call a lawyer as soon as you are injured. The process of filing a Workers’ Compensation claim can be complex, and having a lawyer on your side from the beginning can help you avoid denials and issues and help you get benefits granted when your claim goes to a hearing.
Contact Our Pennsylvania Workers’ Compensation Lawyers Right Away
For help with your case, call our Lancaster, PA Workers’ Comp attorneys at Cardamone Law at (267) 651-7945.
