Workplace injuries and illnesses can happen in any occupation. Workers and builders on Santa Ana construction projects are especially prone to accidents since they must work around heavy machinery and equipment daily. However, office workers can also suffer an injury on the job, such as from a slip and fall accident.
Individuals who suffer an injury or illness while working often have to undergo significant medical treatment and take time off work to attend their medical appointments. Medical bills can pile up quickly, and many people are unsure of what to do or where to turn after their accident.
If you suffered a workplace injury or illness, you should take legal action as quickly as possible. Failing to do so may prevent you from recovering the monetary benefits and damages you deserve for workplace injuries.
The experienced Santa Ana workers’ compensation lawyers at Bentley & More LLP can meet with you to discuss your workplace occurrence and determine if you can file a claim for workers’ compensation benefits—and/or a personal injury claim for negligence against a third party. We can help you file a workers’ compensation claim on your behalf and work to pursue the highest amount of monetary benefits you deserve.
Our skilled and experienced lawyers have recovered millions of dollars in monetary compensation on behalf of our clients, including victims of serious work injuries. Let us help you recover the benefits and damages you need to become whole again following your workplace accident.
For a free case evaluation and legal consultation with a Santa Ana workers’ comp attorney, please call us or contact us online to learn more.
Special note for other law firms: Our experienced team of attorneys proudly represents accident victims who suffer debilitating and catastrophic injuries. We also accept referrals from other law firms regularly, because we have the resources to take on tough challenges. Feel free to call us and let us know how we can help you.
Workplace Occurrences that Cause Illnesses and Injuries
Different types of workplace occurrences and accidents may lead to severe injuries that require ongoing medical care.
Common workplace occurrences that lead to injuries—and a workers’ compensation claim—include:
- Motor vehicle crashes that occur when a worker is operating a company vehicle
- Slip and fall accidents that occur in an office setting or on a construction site
- Falls from ladders, scaffolding, and roofs
- Explosions that occur when products malfunction
- Electrocution accidents that result from faulty wiring
- Accidents occur when a work vehicle runs a worker over, sometimes leading to crushing injuries and fatalities
- Chemical spills that occur on-site
- Accidents happen when machinery breaks down due to defective repair work
If you suffered injuries in any of these workplace occurrences, the experienced Santa Ana workers’ comp lawyers at Bentley & More LLP can determine if you are eligible to file a workers’ compensation claim seeking various benefits. If you are, we can begin gathering the necessary documents on your behalf so that we can present a claim to your employer’s insurance company as soon as possible.
Types of Illnesses and Injuries that Workers Suffer
Workplace occurrences can lead to numerous injuries and illnesses, depending upon the circumstances.
Some of the most common medical conditions that may result from a workplace occurrence include:
- Traumatic brain injuries, including concussions and comas, when a worker sustains a strong blow to the head or body
- Broken bones, including fractured vertebrae and rib fractures
- Permanent soft tissue injuries that cause ongoing pain
- Crush injuries occur when a piece of equipment runs over a worker
- Carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) when an office worker constantly uses their hands, arms, and wrists to type and perform other repetitive secretarial duties
- Asthma and irreparable lung and sinus damage, such as from exposure to asbestos
- Severe bodily reactions to chemicals in the workplace
- Eye injuries that result from an explosion at a worksite
- Spinal cord injuries, such as when an accident victim falls from a ladder and lands on their neck or back
- Burn injuries that result from electrocution on the job
If you suffer any of these complications during a workplace occurrence, you should seek the medical treatment that you need right away. Failing to seek prompt medical treatment after a workplace accident may cause your injuries to become worse over time.
In addition, if you later go to file a workers’ compensation or personal injury claim arising from your workplace accident, the insurance company may become skeptical of your injuries and decide against awarding you fair compensation and benefits.
In addition to seeking the prompt medical treatment that you need after a workplace accident, you should call the experienced Santa Ana workers’ comp attorneys at Bentley & More LLP right away.
Our legal team can begin gathering the medical records and other documents necessary for your workers’ compensation claim or third-party personal injury case. Once you complete your medical treatment, we can file the appropriate claim on your behalf and begin pursuing the benefits and other compensation you deserve.
Eligibility to File a Workers’ Compensation Claim
Workplace accident victims are eligible to file a workers’ compensation claim if they satisfy several requirements. First, to qualify for benefits, an accident victim must an injury from working at their job and during the course of their employment. Therefore, to qualify for benefits, a worker must have performed a job duty at the time their injury or illness occurred or developed.
In most cases, a worker will not qualify for workers’ compensation benefits if they were traveling to or from work at the time of their accident. During this time, a worker is not technically on the job.
Workers’ compensation benefits are no-fault benefits. Therefore, a worker who suffers injuries during the scope of their employment may be eligible for benefits, regardless of how the accident occurred or who caused it.
Our legal team can determine if you are eligible for workers’ compensation benefits and, if so, the types of benefits you can recover.
First, you should be eligible to recover benefits for your related medical expenses. Furthermore, if you had to miss time from work to attend medical appointments and recover from your injuries, you can recover a portion of your lost earnings.
Some workplace accident victims suffer such serious injuries that they cannot return to the same occupation—especially if their job requires heavy lifting, pulling, or pushing. In those instances, the accident victim may be eligible for vocational rehabilitation benefits through the Workers’ Compensation System.
Finally, some workplace accident victims are eligible for various permanency benefits. A permanent injury is an injury that is unlikely to get better over time. To establish that a particular injury is permanent, we can send you for an evaluation with a qualified medical provider. The provider will need to state in writing, and to a reasonable degree of medical certainty, that your claimed injury or injuries are permanent.
When drafting a permanency evaluation report, a medical provider will typically assign a percentage rating to a permanent injury. For example, the provider may determine that you suffered a ten percent permanent impairment to your foot due to a crush injury that happened while on the job.
Our legal team has strong working relationships with area medical providers and can send you to the appropriate doctor for a physical examination and permanency evaluation. We can also help you establish realistic expectations for your workers’ compensation claim, as well as the types and amounts of monetary benefits you may realistically expect to recover.
Potential Third-party Claims Arising from Workplace Accidents
Because the workers’ compensation system exists, accident victims cannot file a personal injury claim or lawsuit against their employer. However, in certain situations, victims of workplace accidents may be eligible to file a personal injury claim against a negligent third party in addition to their workers’ compensation claim for benefits.
For example, if the accident victim suffered injuries in a workplace motor vehicle crash that resulted from another driver’s carelessness or negligence, they can file a third-party claim with the responsible driver’s insurance company. Possible bases for other personal injury claims include:
- A product liability claim against a product manufacturer, designer, or distributor when a defective piece of equipment or machinery malfunctions on a job site, causing injuries
- A personal injury claim against a project manager, contractor, supervisor, or foreman for failing to keep the worksite premises in a reasonably safe condition or to properly supervise workers on the job
- A repair facility that performed improper or negligent maintenance work on construction equipment, causing it to malfunction and bring about serious injuries
To recover monetary damages in addition to your workers’ compensation benefits, you will need to prove several legal elements in your personal injury claim or lawsuit. First, you must demonstrate that the responsible party owed you a legal duty of care. For example, if you suffered injuries in a workplace motor vehicle accident, you must show that the other driver owed a duty to drive safely and carefully.
Next, you must demonstrate that the responsible party violated their duty of care in some way. For example, in the context of a motor vehicle crash, the other driver must have violated a traffic law or otherwise behaved unreasonably and irresponsibly under the circumstances.
Finally, you must show that your workplace accident occurred as a direct result of the responsible party’s negligence, which then caused you physical injuries and damages.
The experienced Santa Ana workers’ comp attorneys at Bentley & More LLP can help you prove these legal elements by retaining experts to testify in your case. It is not uncommon for insurance companies to undervalue companion personal injury claims, especially when they feel that the accident victim has already recovered sufficient monetary benefits in their workers’ comp claim. If the insurance company refuses to compensate you fairly in your personal injury case, we can file a lawsuit against the responsible party in the California court system and, if necessary, take your case to a jury trial or binding arbitration hearing.
Monetary Damages in Third-party Personal Injury Claims and Lawsuits
As part of a companion personal injury claim or lawsuit, accident victims may be eligible to recover additional compensation in the form of monetary damages. The damages that accident victims can recover will depend upon various factors, including the types and amounts of benefits they receive as part of their workers’ compensation claims and the nature and extent of their injuries. Potential monetary damages may include compensation for:
- Past and anticipated medical costs
- Pain and suffering
- Inconvenience
- Mental distress
- Loss of the ability to use a body part
- Permanent disfigurement or disability
- Loss of spousal companionship
- Lost quality of life
Just as with your workers’ compensation claim, we can help you maximize the monetary damages you recover in your third-party case by aggressively advocating for you during settlement negotiations and litigation.
Call a Santa Ana Workers’ Compensation Lawyer Today
Greg Bentley & Keith More, Workers Compensation Lawyers
If you suffered injuries in a workplace accident that took place in Santa Ana, you should receive the medical treatment that you need and contact a personal injury and workers’ comp attorney as quickly as possible. Reach out to a Santa Ana personal injury lawyer.
Remember, you should never negotiate with the insurance company on your own. Insurance companies often have vast resources and teams of lawyers working for them. You can bet that the insurance company will make every effort not to give you the compensation you deserve.
At Bentley & More LLP, we can help you obtain the comprehensive workers’ compensation benefits you deserve. Then, if you are eligible to file a third-party negligence claim, we can assist you throughout the process and, if necessary, litigate your case to an efficient resolution in the court system.
For a free case evaluation and legal consultation with a Santa Ana workers’ comp lawyer, please call us at (949) 870-3800 or contact us online.
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