Workers’ Compensation Benefits

A Work Related Injury Attorney Helping Clients Recover Workers’ Compensation Benefits Throughout New York City and Long Island

Workers’ compensation is a lifeline after being injured on the job. Your employer’s workers’ compensation insurance plan reimburses you for medical expenses and lost wages associated with your injury. If you lost a family member in a job-related accident, workers’ compensation also pays death benefits.  A work related injury attorney at Turley Redmond & Rosasco can help you access these crucial benefits. Our workers compensation lawyers cut through the red tape to recover the maximum amount of compensation you are entitled to receive. Contact us today to learn more about your due compensation. We have offices throughout Long Island, including Nassau County and Suffolk County.  

Workers Compensation as Medical Benefits

Workers’ compensation allows you to receive immediate medical care for your job-related injuries regardless of whether you also qualify for any other type of benefit. In other words, your medical bills are covered even if the workplace injury did not result in a disability or require you to take more than seven days off from work.

Medical benefits pay for your hospital care, doctor’s examinations, diagnostic tests, surgical procedures, medications, physical therapy and other treatments and rehabilitation related to your workplace injury. The insurance carrier commonly requires diagnostic tests, including x-rays, CT scans and MRIs, to prove the nature and extent of your injury.

It is important to note that you should not be charged for your medical care or pharmaceuticals. Instead, your employer or its insurance carrier should be billed.

Cash Benefits and Settlements 

A serious workplace injury can prevent you from returning to work for days or weeks, a prospect that few people could endure without financial assistance. Alternatively, you may be in a position to return to work, but not at your full capacity.

Cash benefits provide the necessary funding to pay your bills while you are out of work. How much cash you receive each week is calculated using this formula:

2/3 x your average weekly wage x % of your disability = weekly benefit

For example, if you make $500 per week and have a total disability, you will receive $333.35 each week in cash benefits (.6667 x $500 x 1.00 = $333.35). If your disability is at 50 percent, you will receive $166.67 each week (.6667 x $500 x .50 = $166.67).

The weekly payments are capped, meaning your benefits cannot exceed the maximum benefit amount regardless of your average weekly wages. For instance, the weekly maximum established by the New York Workers’ Compensation Board for accidents between July 1, 2017 and June 2018 is $870.61.

Unfortunately, you are not paid for lost wages if you miss less than eight days of work. Also, your cash benefits are not available until you are off from work for 14 days, at which point you may be paid for the entire time you missed.

Section 32 Lump Sum Settlement for Injured Employees

Workers who have suffered a serious or career-ending injury may elect a lump sum settlement of their workers’ compensation claims. Such a settlement is also known as a Section 32 settlement agreement.

However, Section 32 settlements must be negotiated with the workers’ compensation insurance company, and there is no guarantee even if the client desires such an agreement. A lump sum settlement must be perceived as mutually beneficial to both the claimant and the insurance company.

This means that it is more important than ever to have your own experienced workers’ compensation lawyer negotiate on your behalf to be sure that an insurance company is giving you full value on your settlement. A Section 32 buyout settlement is different than a Schedule Loss of Use (SLU) award in that it generally closes a workers’ compensation case forever.

One of the benefits of taking a Section 32 settlement is that it frees you from fighting with the insurance company over medical treatment or continuation of wage benefits. You can receive one large tax-free “lump sum” of money to use as you wish, without ever having any future contact with the workers’ compensation system. You may choose to buy a boat or take the vacation you have always dreamed of. Or you may simply need to pay off bills that have accumulated since your injury. Either way, it is one way to put this case behind you and move on to the next chapter in your life.

On the other hand, by taking a cash “buyout” option, you are often signing away your future rights to both weekly payments and medical benefits. Sometimes you can take a lump-sum Section 32 settlement just for the weekly cash benefit portion of your claim, while still leaving your claim open indefinitely for medical care. Generally, you cannot reopen the claim after a Section 32 settlement. You must consider all that you may be giving up before you take a Section 32 lump sum benefit.

Each work related injury attorney at Turley Redmond & Rosasco, L.L.P. has extensive experience with Section 32 lump sum settlements for serious injury or permanent disability. We can help you determine if you are a good candidate for a Section 32 settlement. If you are, we can negotiate with the workers’ compensation insurance company to get you the maximum settlement possible. The insurance company and employer will have their own lawyers whose job is to minimize your settlement. Over the years, we have negotiated many six-figure settlement agreements, including one for over $650,000.(See Success Stories.)

You will eventually have a hearing at the New York State Workers’ Compensation Board to approve your Section 32 settlement agreement. A work related injury attorney will represent you at that hearing to make sure there are no issues that might cause a judge to disapprove your hard-fought settlement.

Death Benefits for Loved Ones Can be Earned by a Work Related Injury Attorney

As the spouse of the deceased employee, you are entitled under New York law to collect a percentage of your loved one’s earnings each week. These workers’ compensation death benefits are also available to minor children, parents, siblings, grandparents or grandchildren depending on the circumstances. If there are multiple dependents, the benefits are divided among you – the amount you receive is determined by your spouse’s income for the previous year, not the number of people who are eligible.

In addition, you may be able to receive a payment from the state to help cover the costs of your family member’s funeral. We explain what the qualifications for these benefits are and show you what you will need to submit to the state.

In sum, the children and spouse of a worker who died on the job are entitled to death benefits equal to two-thirds of the worker’s average weekly wage during the year prior to the accident. These workers’ compensation benefits are also subject to the weekly maximum, regardless of how many surviving dependents make a claim. Workers’ compensation also pays for funeral expenses up to $12,500 in the New York counties and $10,500 in all other New York state counties.

Let a Work Related Injury Attorney in New York Help You Secure Your Rightful Benefits

The sooner you apply for workers’ compensation, the sooner you can receive your benefits. Contact the work related injury attorneys at Turley Redmond & Rosasco today for your free consultation. We have offices in Shirley, Ronkonkoma  and Garden City.