#1 ST. LOUIS WORKERS COMPENSATION ATTORNEY

3. Fired after making a claim

Employers are not required to hold your job for you if you are injured and unable to work. If you are fired without cause, you are still entitled to all of your workers’ compensation benefits. However, some employers will make up a reason or “cause” for firing an employee after a work injury to avoid paying TTD benefits. Missouri law prohibits employers from firing workers for making a workers’ comp claim.

4. Make work jobs

If your doctor releases you back to work with restrictions, your employer can make a modified job available within the legal restrictions. If it does so, your employer does not have to pay TTD. Many of these jobs involve things like sitting in the office opening mail and are often painful to a recently injured employee.

5. Refusal to honor work restrictions

Some employers in St. Louis, MO, say they will make a job available within your medical restrictions – but they do not. They will put you in a job that requires you to lift more than you are supposed to or sit longer than you are able. This can cause unnecessary pain and risk of further injury in Missouri.

6. Bills unpaid, prescriptions unreimbursed

Employers are often slow to pay or deny prescriptions and medical referrals for workers who need attention right away. A personal injury lawyer from our firm has no problem reaching out on your behalf. Speak with tough attorneys who know how to beat insurance companies!

7. Refusal to authorize medical treatment for workers

Employer/insurance companies choose the doctors you see, and sometimes they refuse to provide the medical care recommended by their own doctors. It’s not uncommon for an employer and insurance company to refuse to send the injured worker to an appropriate doctor. An injured worker may see another doctor or a surgeon but at their own expense. Even if they have health insurance, it may not be helpful, as many health insurance policies have an exclusion for workplace injuries. Our St. Louis workers’ compensation lawyers will stand up for your rights!

8. Late TTD checks

Late TTD checks are another common form of harassment. The check from the insurance company should arrive every week, and injured workers rely on these checks to pay their bills and feed their families. There is no excuse for delayed TTD checks. Employers/insurers know workers rely on these checks to make ends meet, but they far too often harass employees by delaying payments after the injury. Our workers’ comp lawyers battle with insurance companies all day, every day. Contact our law firm now!

9. Refusal to pay for permanent damages

Employers will sometimes provide the personal care they are obligated to provide but then fail to pay the employer for permanent injuries after they reach maximum personal improvement. Sometimes, even if you’ve tried to be fair, you need a personal injury lawyer in Missouri to have your back. Contact us today and schedule a free consultation with our workers’ compensation lawyers.

10. Low–ball offers for permanent injuries.

The doctors chosen by the employer/insurer often give you an impairment rating once you have reached maximum medical improvement. These ratings are usually too low, and a personal injury lawyer from our firm can spot these a mile away. They often try to justify these low ratings by claiming your injuries are “pre-existing” conditions and not related to the work accident.

Don’t forget that your employer is required to pay you for workers comp benefits such as medical expenses and lost wages only until you reach maximum medical improvement. If it is estimated that you will not get any better, the employer will probably offer a settlement to compensate you for any diminishment in your capacity to work that you have suffered due to the workplace injury.

Work with an experienced worker’s compensation lawyer from a renowned personal injury law firm to help you assess your case, list down potential challenges, and prepare to help you reach the desired outcome.

Benefit payments in St. Louis, Missouri, can occur in ways such as:

• Temporary partial disability benefits — assuming the person is able to continue working even partial hours, this method subtracts the new wage from the former normal wage and gives two-thirds of that amount back to the person in recovery
• Temporary total disability benefits — a person unable to return to work receives two-thirds of their weekly wages until they can return to work
• Permanent partial disability benefits — as above, those who suffered injuries that prevent them from returning to work receive two-thirds of their weekly wage, available as lump sum payments if desired
• Permanent total disability benefits — this payment is a lifetime benefit of two-thirds of the wage at the time of the injury, available in a lump sum if desired

Bear in mind that it’s crucial to immediately report a workplace injury to a supervisor or employer. Failure to report your injury within 30 days may jeopardize your ability to receive workers’ comp benefits.

If your employer doesn’t want to provide a form for you to complete, take a piece of paper and write everything out, including what happened, time and place, as well as the date and the nature of the injury. If you hand-deliver a workplace injury notice, keep a record of the full name of the person you delivered it to and the date when that occurred.