How Compromise and Release Can Settle Your California Workers Compensation Case
A workplace injury caused by an unexpected accident can have unfortunate and lasting consequences for your health, finances, and career. In anticipation of and preparation for sudden on-the-job injuries, employers purchase what is known as workers’ compensation insurance.
Workers’ Compensation Insurance Providers
The effects of job injury can be fairly expensive – doctors’ bills, prescription medication, physical therapy, surgery, and lost wages can add up. Many employers, especially smaller ones, are unable to shoulder the cost of compensating employees for accidents that occur at the worksite.
That is where workers’ compensation insurance kicks in. Like how you make monthly payments to your car insurance company to help you prepare for damages and injuries caused by a car crash, employers pay premiums to workers’ compensation insurance companies. In exchange, the insurance companies handle workers’ compensation claims, including receiving, reviewing, and accepting or denying claims. The employer simply passes off any claims to its insurance provider. In a way, this system is beneficial for injured employees in California because employers should theoretically have little incentive to thwart the claims process when they are not responsible out-of-pocket for reimbursement to the employees. However, because claims go to insurance companies, there is often an impersonal, cold, and calculating approach to claims review that does not take into account how the injury has affected you and your loved ones.
When you are injured and notify your employer, your employer will give you a special claim form. On this form, you will detail what happened to you and the extent of your injuries. You will then sign the employee signature line and return it to your employer. Your supervisor will then fill in additional information and forward the form to the company’s insurance provider. The insurance company will begin reviewing your claim.
Compromise and Release Agreements in California
Many of my previous California workers’ compensation law posts have focused on what to do when your claim is denied. But what about when your claim is approved? How exactly will you be paid? One advantageous way of negotiating workers’ compensation benefits with the insurance company is to enter into a Compromise and Release. In California, a Compromise and Release is a special settlement that completely closes your workers’ compensation claim. When your claim is closed, you cannot later come back and request additional benefits or contest a decision.
If you are prohibited from seeking further assistance or filing an appeal, what is the allure of a Compromise and Release? A Compromise and Release is a quick way to get money up-front from the insurance company. Similar to a cash settlement in a car accident case, a Compromise and Release acts as an agreement between the parties. The insurance provider agrees to give you a certain sum of money in exchange for the closure of the claim. This lump sum is designed to cover all of your medical bills, future medical expenses, and lost wages. Your Sacramento workers’ compensation lawyer will not be paid on an hourly basis like in other types of cases. Rather, your attorney will be awarded a percentage of your lump-sum payment.
Once you and the insurance company have settled on an amount, the Compromise and Release will be drafted, signed by both parties, and submitted to a judge for approval. If the judge finds the agreement is fair and just, the judge will sign the agreement, and the money will then be disbursed to you.
To read more follow these links: Workers’ Compensation FAQs
Follow this link to read all articles posted in our Sacramento Workers’ Compensation Blog.
Sacramento Workers’ Compensation Lawyer
A Compromise and Release is but one of several options available to employees injured at work. A skilled Sacramento workers’ compensation attorney can help you weigh your options and determine which works best based on your needs and goals.
I’m Ed Smith, a Sacramento Workers’ Compensation Lawyer. If you or a loved one has sustained an injury at work, please call me at (916) 694-0002 for free, friendly advice. Read more about us on our website, https://www.AutoAccident.com.
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