Denver Manufacturing Injury Lawyer
All Colorado employers that have at least one employee are required to purchase a workers’ compensation insurance policy. These policies provide emergency income to all people injured at work for as long as the injuries keep them from earning a living. Even in situations where the injury was the workers’ fault, the payments can be issued. Denver manufacturing injury lawyers can help people who work in all workplaces to obtain these benefits. If you have been injured while working, speak with a compassionate workers’ compensation attorney immediately. En Español.
Potential Complications
However, the program is not without its drawbacks. Insurance companies may deny a claim if they believe the injury did not happen at work. A worker pressing sheet metal may be injured when their hand is caught in the press. This incident should result in a successful workers’ compensation claim.
If this same worker is injured while stepping in a pothole in the parking lot after their shift is over, the insurance company will likely argue that the injury was not work-related. These are clear-cut examples, but many disputes fall into a grey area.
Denver manufacturing injury attorneys have seen these disputes form the core of many appeals concerning employee benefits. Manufacturing injury attorneys represent individuals during these appeals to come to fair settlements or to argue the case in court.
Injuries and Associated Benefits
There are a number of ways that someone can be injured while working a manufacturing job. Anyone who finds themselves harmed after a day at work, should speak with a manufacturing injury lawyer in Denver. Someone may:
- Break a leg in a collision with a forklift
- Be concussed when a box falls off a shelf
- Tear ligaments in their knee while falling down stairs
- Be severely cut when a hand is caught in machinery
Any injury, big or small, can form the basis of a workers’ compensation claim as long as the employee misses at least three days at work. In these situations, payments are issued on a bi-weekly basis at 2/3 the average weekly wage for all time missed. The worker visits the doctor, receives treatment, and eventually returns to work at full strength. But many injuries leave the worker at less than optimal health.
What is the Impact of Permanent or Loss of Function?
Colorado law states in Colorado Statute 8-42-107 (2) that the loss of function in an appendage is grounds for the issuance of a set of payments according to a benefit schedule. These payments are non-negotiable and insurance companies are required to pay them. In cases where the injuries are permanent but do not involve the loss of an appendage, such as a spinal cord injury, the doctor’s opinions concerning residual functionality are very important. They will determine the insurance company’s proposed benefits package.
These inexact permanent partial disability packages are the other bases for many workers’ compensation appeals. If a worker suffers an injury that results in brain damage affecting their speech skills, they are still able to perform some jobs. The worker may believe that they are limited to part-time work, but the insurance company insists that they can perform a job for 40 hours a week. Denver manufacturing injury attorneys help individuals plead this case through the appeals process to convince the court their injuries deserve full compensation.
How a Denver Manufacturing Injury Attorney Can Help
Suffering an injury while at work can be an intimidating experience. Many workers hesitate to report the injury out of fear of retaliation or reprisal. Colorado law makes it a crime to retaliate against any person claiming workers’ compensation benefits.
Still, the process can be complicated. Insurance companies make a profit if they can deny a claim for a technicality or convince an injured worker to take reduced benefits. Denver manufacturing injury lawyers can help hold insurance companies accountable to pay legitimate claims. To learn more about what an attorney could do for you, call today.
