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Workplace Accidents
 For injuries occurring on the job, the first place to seek benefits to cover medical expenses and compensation for lost time from work is the Illinois workers' compensation system.
"Workers' compensation" is a system of benefits which the law requires employers to provide to their employees. These benefits are available regardless of who is at fault for the accident. Almost every employee in Illinois is covered by the Workers' Compensation Act. The three main categories of benefits under the Act are:
- Payment of any reasonable and related medical bills;
- Temporary total disability (TTD) during periods of time off work; and
- Permanent disability, usually in a lump sum, based on the nature and extent of the injury
Filing a workers' compensation claim is not a lawsuit against your employer. It is a claim for benefits filed against your employer's workers' compensation insurance carrier. In fact, you are not allowed to sue your employer for accidents occurring on the job. It is also important to note that it is illegal for your employer to terminate you for filing a workers' compensation claim. If that were to happen, you may have grounds to move forward with a lawsuit against your employer for retaliatory discharge.
Although simple to file, workers' compensation claims are extremely complex and should not be handled without an attorney. Someone who is untrained in workers' compensation law will not be able to properly evaluate the value of the claim.
Furthermore, while the insurance carrier will often agree to pay benefits initially, benefits are often unjustly terminated for a number of reasons. The primary objective of insurance companies is to minimize claims and thereby maximize profits. They have attorneys and doctors on their side, and they will often get a doctor's opinion that the medical treatment being obtained by the employee for his injuries is unnecessary or unrelated to the accident. In this situation, it is crucial to have an experienced workers' compensation attorney who will fight to get your benefits restored.
For a much more detailed discussion of workers' compensation benefits, visit our dedicated workers' compensation site.
An injured worker may also have a viable "third party" claim against the someone other than the employer whose negligence caused the injuries. For example, if a traveling salesperson is involved in a car accident where someone else was at fault, he or she will have a workers' compensation claim as well as a third party claim. Or if a worker slips and falls in the company parking lot due to negligence on the part of a contractor hired to plow the snow, the employee will likely also have workers' compensation claim as well as a third party claim.
In a third party claim, the injured worker may be entitled to recover different and additional kinds of damages including pain and suffering and loss of a normal life. This is why third party cases often result in much higher damage awards than workers' compensation claims. The workers' compensation insurer would have a right to recoup most of the benefits it paid from the proceeds of the third party case, however.
The attorneys at Drake & Collopy, P.C. have over two decades of combined experience handling both workers' compensation claims and third party claims. It is highly desirable to have a single law firm represent the injured worker in both types of claims given the complex interaction between the two. Most injury attorneys will handle either the workers' compensation claim or the third party claim, but not both. We at Drake & Collopy, P.C. have the requisite experience and knowledge to effectively handle both types of claims and to maximize the overall recovery.
If you or member of your family member was injured in a workplace accident, we can help. Contact us online or call us at 312.345.0220, or toll free at 1.888.372.5355, for more information or to schedule a free consultation.
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