Injuries or illnesses are a common thing that can happen to anyone who’s involved in almost any type of work. When it actually does happen, you’ll be needing to sort out some things in order to get compensation for being unable to work.
Some people want to handle this kind of a situation on their own, and others don’t want to risk anything so they decide to hire a lawyer to do it for them. However, there are advantages and disadvantages for both methods, so in this article, we’re going to weigh them in and decide which one is the better option together. Let’s take a look.
When am I supposed to try and represent myself?
Source: MileIQ
Here are some common examples. As a general rule of thumb, these are some of the situations when you can try to represent yourself without an attorney if all of these following statements happen to be true.
- You did suffer a minor workplace injury, something like a twisted ankle or a flesh cut that requires some stitching and attention from a doctor.
- Your employer confirms and admits that the injury happened during your work shift and on your workplace.
- You are not exaggerating and overreacting trying to make your injury look more severe than it is.
- You don’t have a previous problem that can enhance the chances of you getting injured in an area that is already affected by something you’ve had in the past. For example, if you were suffering back pain long before you got the job, hurting your back will not be as acceptable as it would be if you were perfectly healthy in that area before.
These are some of the situations in which you won’t be needing a lawyer and most likely everything will go smoothly and without any issues. However, sometimes things can get more complicated, so let’s take a look at some examples.
When should I be hiring a lawyer?
Source: Marc Futterweit
Sometimes your employer will be a bit problematic in terms of accepting that the injury is legit and happened at your workplace, and according to HKFindLawyer, you’ll need a lawyer in order to get all the benefits that you are supposed to get due to your injury. Here are a few examples of when you’ll need to hire a lawyer.
- When your employer denies that the injury is legit or that it is not their responsibility to pay for the damages.
- When your employer’s settlement simply doesn’t cover all of the costs and medical bills that it should and offers something much less than what you deserve.
- Your injury prevents you to do something that you were doing before you got it, but your employer simply doesn’t accept that fact.
- Your boss is trying to stop you from getting a workers compensation claim because they want to save money.
So, if you happen to find yourself in some of the previously mentioned situations, hiring a lawyer is definitely a necessity. Your health is important and so is getting what you deserve for your injury that happened at your workplace. Sometimes we are not able to compromise with our bosses, so we need someone with higher authority to do it for us, and this is where lawyers come to save the day.
It is always better to discuss with your boss and try to find a common ground which works for both of you, but if that is not possible, you shouldn’t let them take away your rights for injury compensations.
