If you get injured on the job, you technically can delay making a report. For instance, the statute of limitations is three years for workers’ comp claims. Injured workers are supposed to inform their employer that they’ve been hurt within 120 days.
But realistically, it’s often best to report these workplace injuries as soon as you possibly can. There are two reasons why this can help.
1. Getting prompt medical care
First and foremost, after a workplace injury, it’s important to get medical care. You may need to go to the hospital, have surgery, talk to your primary care physician and much more, depending on the nature of your injury.
Not only do you realistically need this care so that you can heal and recover, but you also want to get access to your medical records. If you do start to seek workers’ comp benefits, having medical records to document the nature of your injury—along with its severity—is very helpful to your case.
2. Avoiding denied claims
Prompt reporting can also help to avoid some reasons why your employer may want to deny your claim.
For example, some employers will say that workers were actually hurt at home while they weren’t on the job. The employer says that the worker is just claiming to have been injured on the job to get access to the benefits. If there’s a delay in reporting, it opens up the door to this type of denial. But if you report the injury right away, it’s much harder for your employer to say that it happened at home.
When seeking proper workers’ compensation benefits gets complicated, it can be helpful to work with an experienced legal team. Be sure you know what options you have and what steps to take.