How Are Workers’ Compensation Claims Different from Workplace Accident Claims?
Workplace accident claims and workers’ compensation claims may seem interchangeable, but they are not. New Jersey follows a no-fault insurance system when a workplace accident happens and an employee files a workers’ compensation claim. In this system, there is no burden to prove negligence occurred in order for an injured worker to obtain benefits. Workers’ compensation benefits in New Jersey can include paying for the cost of medical treatment, missed wages, and permanent disability compensation.
Usually, though, when the extent of the physical bodily harm a worker suffers is severe, workers’ compensation benefits tend to be insufficient for the totality of their costs. Here, it could be possible for an injured worker to also file a workplace injury accident claim against a third party.
For more information about New Jersey’s workers’ compensation system or injury accident claims, please connect with our South Jersey workers’ compensation attorney at Monaco Law PC.
Workers’ Compensation VS. Workplace Accident Cases in New Jersey
Workers’ compensation is meant to protect workers and shield employers from liability. Although workers will be able to secure benefits after a workplace accident from their employer’s workers’ compensation insurance, there are limits to what can be recovered. By contrast, when a workplace injury accident claim is filed, a more significant amount of financial compensation to reflect the totality of an injured worker’s losses may be secured.
The big difference between obtaining workers’ compensation benefits and workplace injury accident compensation is the need to prove fault. There is no need to prove fault for workers’ compensation benefits, but there is for an injury claim.
Injury accidents that occur in a workplace that is on a commercial or residential site where there were several contractors also working may be eligible for a personal injury claim. This is because it would take a third-party’s negligence to allow for a workplace accident injury claim.
New Jersey’s statute of limitations for a workplace accident claim is two years. This means you have two years after your injury accident to take legal action. If you fail to do so within this two-year timeframe, then you risk losing your ability to secure financial compensation for your losses. In some instances, exceptions to the statute of limitations do exist. When an injured party does not realize they suffered harm until after the injury accident, there can be an adjustment on the timeframe allowed for a claim.
Speak to a New Jersey Personal Injury Attorney Today
If you were injured at work, you may be able to file both a workers’ compensation claim and a workplace injury claim. Please call our South Jersey personal injury lawyer at Monaco Law PC after your workplace injury accident to schedule a free consultation at (609) 277-3166 for our New Jersey office and (215) 546-3166 for our office in Pennsylvania.
We are a New Jersey personal injury law firm serving Atlantic County, Burlington County, Cape May County, Camden County, Cumberland County, Gloucester County, Mercer County, Middlesex County, Ocean County, Salem County, and all of South Jersey.
Source:
nj.gov/labor/workerscompensation/
