Reno Workers’ Compensation Lawyer

As explained by the Nevada Department of Industrial Relations, workers’ compensation is a no-fault insurance program that provides benefits to employers who are injured on the job and protection to employers who have provided coverage at the time of the injury. With some exceptions, anyone in Nevada who hires at least one employee must provide workers’ compensation insurance with coverage in place from the moment the employee is hired. Workers’ compensation benefits that the employee is entitled to receive include:

• Medical treatment
• Compensation for lost time at work due to the injury
• Permanent partial or permanent total disability compensation
• Vocational rehabilitation for workers who are unable to return to the same position they held before the injury
• Dependent benefits for employees who die as a result of their workplace injuries
• Mileage associated with travel to obtain medical treatment

Employers who have provided coverage at the time of their employee’s injury are protected from any other damages claimed by the employee in relation to their work-related injury. In other words, workers’ compensation (or comp) is insurance purchased by your employer to cover you against the costs of work-related injuries or illnesses. Your employer purchases workers’ comp insurance for you, and cannot ask you to pay for it yourself. The insurance covers you against the costs of all job-related injuries and illnesses, no matter how they happened or who caused them.

If you’re injured in a workplace accident, you should seek medical treatment immediately. After that, the process for obtaining workers’ compensation benefits includes the following steps:

• Within three days of medical treatment for a workplace injury, a physician or chiropractor must file a Report of Initial Treatment (C-4) form with the employer and the employer’s insurer.
• Within seven days of the injury, the injured employee must complete the Notice of Injury or Occupational Disease (C-1) form to be submitted to the employer and the employer’s insurer.
• Within six days of receiving the C-4 form from the physician who provided treatment to the injured worker, employers must complete an Employer’s Report of Industrial Injury or Occupational Disease form to be submitted to the insurer.
• Insurers have 30 days after being notified of the workplace injury to either accept the claim, notify the claimant and begin paying on the claim; or deny the claim and notify the claimant.
• Within six days of receiving the C-4 form, the employer must also complete the Employer’s Wage Verification (D-8) form and submit it to the insurer if the C-4 indicates that injured worker will miss more than 5 consecutive days of work or 5 days within the next 20 days.
• The employee has 90 days after an accident to file a claim with the insurer if the employee has sought medical treatment for an injury arising during the course of employment or the employee was off work as the result of an injury arising during the course of employment. In the event of the death of an employee, a family member has one year after the death of the employee to file a claim with the insurer. If the employee is unsure as to who the employer’s insurer is, he or she should ask the employer or look at the workers’ compensation poster posted at his or her workplace.
• Employees must obtain medical treatment for their workplace injury from an authorized medical provider who is a member of the Panel of Treating Physicians and Chiropractors.
• State law prohibits employers from inducing or coercing an employee to avoid seeking treatment for a workplace injury or from filing a claim. Employers also cannot fire an employee solely for filing a workers’ compensation claim. However, Nevada is an employment at-will state, meaning that employers can fire workers at any time, with or without reason.
• Employees whose claims are denied will be notified of the appeals process.
• If all of that sounds complicated, it is—and that’s the simplified version. That’s why you want a Reno workers’ comp attorney to help you through the process and make sure you don’t suffer any unnecessary delays or denials in obtaining your benefits.

“While the workers’ compensation program is a no-fault system designed to provide benefits to workers injured on the job regardless of how or why the injury took place, there are some reasons why a claim would be denied. The most common reasons for a denial include:

• Untimely filing: The worker failed to meet the seven day deadline for notifying their employer or the 90 day deadline for filing a claim with the insurer.
• Drug or alcohol use: If the employee is found to have drugs or alcohol in his or her system at the time of the injury, then the drugs or alcohol will be considered the proximate cause of the injury and the claim will be denied.
• Intentional injury: If it is discovered that the employee’s injury occurred due to an intentional attempt to hurt himself or herself or anyone else, the claim may be denied.
• Fraud: If it can be proven that the worker made an intentional misrepresentation of his or her injuries to gain workers’ compensation benefits, the claim will be denied and the employee may be prosecuted.

While both types of claims are focused on recovering the maximum amount of compensation for an injury received accidentally, there is one big difference between workers compensation claims and personal injury cases. Personal injury claims are based on finding which party is most at fault and must be held liable to pay for the injuries received. Workmans’ compensation claims fall under the no-fault category, which means that fault is not a relevant piece of the case. Nobody is considered to be at fault in a workers’ comp claim, so the settlement and compensation process is typically processed more quickly.
If you have received an accidental injury but are uncertain about whether it could fall in the personal injury claim or workmans’ comp claim category, consult with an attorney to discuss the situation.

A workers’ compensation appeal hearing resembles an informal court trial. Instead of a judge, a hearing officer presides. No court reporter takes a transcript. The person appealing the claim denial typically gets about 10 to 15 minutes to present a case for overturning the claim decision.
Workers (or, better, their attorneys) can use that time to present evidence and witness testimony, and to make arguments in their favor. Workers who live too far outside of Reno or cannot attend a hearing in person may arrange to attend via telephone. The worker should receive the hearing officer’s decision via mail approximately 10 days after the hearing. If the hearing officer denies the workers’ comp claim again, the worker can pursue another round of appeals.
Again, we urge any Reno worker who has received a workers’ comp claim denial to seek the help of our experienced attorneys.

No. Although workers’ compensation benefits pay for necessary medical treatment related to a workplace injury or occupational illness, that is not all. Workers’ compensation insurance also pays disability-related benefits. The amount of benefits a worker might receive depends on the severity and nature of the worker’s injury or illness and long-term prognosis.
Temporary disability benefits replace some of a worker’s lost wages during recovery from a workplace illness or injury. Permanent disability benefits provide compensation for workers who have reached maximum medical improvement but still have a permanent injury or condition that limits their ability to work.
Spouses of workers who die because of a job-related injury or illness can also receive death benefits and reimbursement for funeral expenses.

Under Nevada law, a workers’ compensation insurance company must send written correspondence within 30 days of receiving a claim for benefits notifying the worker of acceptance or denial of a claim. If the carrier denies the worker’s claim for benefits, then the worker has the right to appeal that decision.
Appealing a claim denial involves a somewhat-complicated process that resembles, in many ways, filing a lawsuit. We urge Reno workers who want to appeal the denial of a workers’ comp claim to seek experienced legal representation from our Reno workers’ compensation attorneys. Attempting to pursue an appeal on your own can easily result in mistakes that cost you important rights to workers’ comp benefits.

As with any legal case, you can expect to pay a portion of your settlement amount to your lawyer in return for their services. You can typically plan to pay about 20% of the total settlement amount to your lawyer after the claim has been processed and closed. Remember that you will receive a free initial case consultation to discuss the case before hiring legal services, and in most cases, if the law firm cannot win the case, you will not owe a single penny.
At Benson & Bingham, it is never our goal to price gouge and take advantage of your situation! Instead, we work diligently as we negotiate on your behalf to receive the highest possible settlement amount, and we offer a variety of flexible payment plans to our clients.

In Nevada, injured employees must notify their supervisor/employer of a workplace injury or occupational disease within seven days of injury or discovering the health condition. However, if you did not notify your employer until after the seven-day cutoff, you should still file a workers’ compensation claim.
Injured workers have valid reasons for not immediately notifying their employer of an injury or illness. Examples include working out of town, your supervisor was on vacation, or you were hospitalized and couldn’t talk. Speak with the experienced Reno workers’ compensation insurance attorneys at Benson & Bingham Accident Injury Lawyers, LLC, to learn about your rights.

The short answer is yes. One way employers avoid large claims against their workers’ compensation insurance coverage is by offering injured workers a light-duty position that the worker can do even with medical restrictions. If your employer offers you a light duty role, in almost all circumstances you must take the position, even though that may result in you no longer qualifying for wage replacement (i.e., disability) benefits.
Nevada law does not require your employer to offer you a light duty position. If you give your employer the physical restrictions set by your doctor, and your employer does not give you a light duty role, then you can seek wage replacement benefits totaling two-thirds of your average monthly wages before the injury or illness (in most cases).

“Every claim is different, but our general advice is that it is better to be safe than sorry, and you should call us for help with your claim. Having an experienced lawyer on your team can make a world of difference in whether you obtain the benefits you deserve. Some instances where having legal representation may help include:

• You filled out a workers’ compensation claim after a workplace injury, and the carrier denied the claim.
• Your employer threatened to retaliate or actively retaliated against you after you filed a workers’ compensation claim.
• You contracted an illness because of harmful chemicals or you were injured because of defective machinery.
• You sustained an on-the-job injury because of an unsafe condition on someone else’s property.
• Your employer did not purchase workers’ compensation insurance for you and your co-workers as required by law.
• You were driving a company vehicle and got into a traffic crash.
• Your benefits have been reduced.
• You need medical care but your employer’s workers’ compensation carrier will not approve the recommended treatment.
• Contact our experienced Reno workers’ compensation attorneys today to learn more.