Parkland Workers’ Compensation Lawyer
Many people associate workplace injuries with trauma injuries. Indeed, most job-related injuries happen suddenly and without warning. For example, just four kinds of injuries cause most of the fatal construction accidents in Florida. However, occupational diseases, such as hearing loss and breathing problems, are also a problem in the Sunshine State. As outlined below, the same benefits are available in both situations.
Today’s workers’ compensation insurance system is dominated by insurance company interests. But the dedicated Parkland workers’ compensation lawyers at Lyons & Snyder are on your side. We go toe-to-toe with insurance company lawyers and fight for the benefits you need and deserve. The sooner you get the funds you need to recover from your injury, the sooner you can get back to work. That final outcome benefits everyone.
Workers’ Compensation Benefits
Florida’s job injury compensation system replaces lost wages. The type of wage replacement usually depends on the type of injury:
- Permanent Partial Disability: Many injuries never completely heal. For example, the range of motion in an injured shoulder might never be the same. In these cases, workers’ compensation usually pays a lump sum, depending on the nature and extent of the disability.
- Permanent Total Disability: The same wage replacement model usually applies in these cases. Bear in mind that a “disability” is not just a medical term. The D-word also has economic, vocational, legal, educational, and other dimensions. A PTD injury in some cases might only be a PPD injury in other situations.
- Temporary Partial Disability: Some victims can work as they recover from their injuries. But they must accept light duty assignments, like file clerk or parking lot attendant. So, workers’ compensation usually pays two-thirds of the difference between the victim’s old and new incomes.
- Temporary Total Disability: Most job injuries are TTD injuries. These victims cannot work as they recover. To give the family an income stream during these trying times, workers’ compensation usually pays two-thirds of the victim’s average weekly wage until a doctor clears the victim to go back to work.
Most job injury victims in Florida may choose their own doctors. Our Parkland workers’ compensation lawyers can fill you in on the complex details.
Nonsubscriber Claims
This phrase is Legalese for job injury claims which workers’ compensation does not cover. The good news is that, in most nonsubscriber claims, additional compensation for noneconomic losses, such as pain and suffering, is usually available. The bad news is that nonsubscriber claims are slightly more complex.
Florida law requires most employers to buy workers’ compensation insurance. Some employers ignore this requirement. Others make false claims to the insurance company, such as lying about the size of its payroll, and the insurance company refuses to honor the policy.
If victims prove negligence, they are eligible for compensation. Florida law prevents employers from using some silver bullet defenses in these claims. So, liability is easier to prove.
In other cases, defective products are responsible for worker injuries. Examples include safety gear that doesn’t adequately protect workers and tools made from cheap parts which easily break. These manufacturers cannot hide behind state workers’ compensation laws. Instead, they are strictly liable for the damages their defective products cause, at least in most cases.
Other employers send workers to job sites which they know are dangerous. For example, OSHA might cite a construction company for unsafe scaffolding, and the company might tell workers to climb the scaffolding before the company fixes it. Florida law gives these victims the option to pursue additional compensation in civil court.
Contact a Dedicated Broward County Workers’ Compensation Attorney
Injury victims are usually entitled to substantial compensation. For a free consultation with an experienced workers’ compensation lawyer in Parkland, contact Lyons & Snyder, Trial Lawyers. We do not charge upfront legal fees in these matters.
