workers compensation broward county
At GGA Insurance Group, our Broward County experts are here to help companies and employees maximize the benefits of workers’ compensation insurance.
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What is Workers' Compensation Insurance?
Workers’ compensation insurance helps employees get medical and financial coverage if they have suffered an injury or illness due to work-related tasks. This type of insurance also protects businesses from lawsuits and settlements made by employees because of such damages.
Florida law states that employers with a workforce of more than four employees must have workers’ compensation insurance for their business. Moreover, the company will have to take the entire burden of insurance costs, and the employees will receive the benefits regardless of who was at fault for the accident. Simultaneously, injured employees cannot sue their employers for damages under this insurance.
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How Can Individuals Qualify For Workers’ Compensation Insurance?
To qualify for the benefits of Broward County workers’ compensation insurance, you must first be an employee who works for a business that already has a workers’ compensation policy. Secondly, it’s vital that the damage, injury, or sickness that you’ve sustained was due to an activity that falls under the scope of employment.
Lastly, it’s essential that you comply with the statute of limitations for claiming the injury. At times understanding workers’ compensation may seem like child’s play. However, it may cause some severe confusion about the type of coverage or qualifying requirements. Get in touch with our insurance specialists today and learn about your workers’ compensation eligibility status.
What Does Workers’ Compensation Insurance Cover?
Workers’ compensation insurance covers almost every type of injury or illness caused by a work-related activity. A breakdown of these includes burns, cold exposure, being caught in or between machinery, cuts, punctures, scrapes, fall or slip injury, strains or sprains, stepping on broken equipment, and being struck or injured by equipment or object.
Not only does workers’ compensation cover all the medical expenses and lost income resulting from these injuries, it also offers income replacement benefits such as temporary partial disability benefits, temporary total disability benefits, and permanent partial and permanent total disability benefits. In case of death, the employee’s family can claim the benefits instead.
What is the Correct Procedure To File For Workers Compensation Benefits in Broward County?
There are certain steps you must follow to file for workers compensation benefits in Broward County. Firstly, it’s imperative to notify your employer about the injury or illness within 30 days of the accident. Another crucial step is to seek medical assistance to receive documentation of your condition, which can be used as proof when filing for the claim. Lastly, you must wait for further instructions from the business’ insurance company, which usually responds back within seven days after you’ve notified the employer about your condition. The insurance company will then assign you the benefits depending on the severity of your injury or illness.
Limits of Workers’ Compensation Insurance
Workers often misinterpret the coverage provided by workers’ compensation insurance and, thus, end up claiming benefits that are not even covered by the insurance policy. Similarly, not all employees and companies are eligible for workers’ compensation. Learn more about the limitations for your employees and company below.
Only Job-Related Injuries Are Eligible For Benefits
Workers compensation covers injuries that happen while performing work-related tasks. If the injury occurs during job duties, like moving heavy materials, it's covered. But if it happens during a non-work activity, like a car accident during a lunch break, it's not covered.
Independent Contractors & Volunteers Are Not Regarded As Employees
With the exception of those working in the construction industry, who are deemed employees and require coverage, independent contractors in Florida are not obliged to have workers' compensation insurance.
What Steps Should Workers Take After a Workers’ Compensation Denial?
Understanding & Addressing Denied Claims
Initially, it is integral to figure out why the claim was denied, what can be done to address the issue, and how to appeal the denial effectively.
The Importance of Informed Insurance Assistance
To complete the steps above, you must have exhaustive knowledge about workers’ compensation insurance. Thus, having a reliable and informed insurance company can smoothen the process.
Maximize Benefits with GGA Insurance Group
Regardless of the reason for denial, GGA Insurance Group offers the best chance of collecting the workers compensation benefits entitled to you.
Workers’ compensation insurance is your personal security tool that aims to safeguard employee rights at the workplace and protect the business against lawsuits. This insurance caters to the injuries or damage caused to the workforce of a business due to commercial activity. The workers’ compensation insurance Broward County covers the employee’s medical expenses, protects the business from lawsuits, and provides income compensation to the injured employee. But before you decide to buy an insurance, it’s essential to know the specific details of the insurance plan and how it works.
What is the Process for Reporting an Injury?
If you’re an employee then as soon as you acquire an injury, the first person you must inform should be your employer. Without notifying them about the damage, you cannot obtain workers’ compensation insurance benefits. The next thing you need to remember is to avoid any delays in reporting your injury.
In Florida, workers have a notice period of up to 30 days to inform their employers about their injuries. Nevertheless, they are encouraged to report it as soon as possible. However, if you miss the deadline to report your injury, your claim will be denied, and you will not be able to avail your workers compensation benefits.
The Duration of Receiving Benefits From the Insurance
The duration of availing your workers compensation benefits depends upon the following factors.
- The type of benefit
- Severity of injury
- Recovery time
Generally, injured workers can have access to the temporary partial and total disability benefits for 104 weeks. However, if the worker has recovered before the 104-week period, the insurance benefits will be terminated.
On the other hand, permanent disability benefits differ from temporary disability ones. The duration of benefits for permanent disability depends upon a system of impairment rating. You will receive two weeks of advantages for an impairment percentage from 1-10 and three weeks of advantages if your impairment percentage is between 11 to 15 percent. Thus, the weeks of benefits will continue to increase based on the impairment percentage. Lastly, if you receive permanent disability benefits, you will never return to work and continue to gain benefits for as long as you are disabled.
How to Claim an Injury to Your Employer
Remember to be honest and upfront when reporting an injury to your employer. But make sure not to use information that can be used against you. Usually, your employer and insurance carrier will work jointly to reduce your claim’s value.
Therefore try to stick to the point and discuss your injury and treatment requirements. However, don’t open up the status of your claim to the employer or insurance carrier to stay relevant to your claim and get it filed immediately.
Legal Benefits You Can Gain Access To In Case of A Serious Injury
The Florida ordinance provides many medical benefits in case of a serious injury. The benefits you can avail of depend on the severity of your injury. Following are a few potential benefits you can receive: special transportation, rehabilitation, home modifications, diagnostic tests, treatment, and therapy. When faced with such unfortunate times, remember that your insurance carrier is well aware of the benefits you are entitled to and shall provide them.
How to be Sure That You are Receiving the Legally Required Compensation
When asking for your rights to the insurance carrier or employer, don’t rely on them and always assume they are not presenting you with all the information you need to stay assured.
The only way to receive 100% of benefits from your Broward County workers compensation insurance is to involve an attorney or a specialized agency to help you out. Their experience and intelligence allow them to dig out all the benefits and the added bonus coverages for your insurance plan.
Look at it this way. The insurance providers picture your claim as a file, that they are in a rush to close by deciding on the easiest method of treatment, costing them the lowest amount. To simplify the insurance procedure, involve an insurance agency like the GGA Insurance Group. Their team of experts will help you understand your legal rights and entitlements, guaranteeing you the maximum benefits you deserve.
The Timeline of Receiving Your First Workers’ Compensation Check
After filing your claim, you are qualified to attain the benefits of your workers’ compensation insurance plan. Generally, one may start receiving their wage compensation on the eighth day after filing their claim, but that doesn’t assure your check being delivered that same day.
As a rule of thumb, the law states that injured workers will receive their first wage compensation check on the 21st day after filing their complaint for an injury. From then onwards, you will receive your compensation benefits every two week, until you recover from your injury and are no longer eligible to obtain the compensation benefits.
To File or Not To File?
Suppose you have incurred an injury and are stuck between deciding whether you should file for a claim or not. In that case, it’s important to remember that workers’ compensation insurance is designed to protect your rights as an employee.
In most cases, the employers themselves register a claim to the state of Florida after their workers incur an injury. When deciding to file for a claim, one must know that worker compensation insurance exists to safeguard employees from tragic damages. Even if it’s a minor injury, reporting it to the concerned authorities is the right choice.
How to Find An Insurance Agency to Represent You
When finding a representative, you need an insurance agency that specializes in a particular insurance or presents several business insurance policies for ultimate coverage.
Be it workers compensation, general liability, or auto commercial insurance, GGA Insurance Group is an all-rounder when it comes to providing comprehensive insurance policies to their clients. With our trained team of professionals, we listen to our client’s needs and deliver accurate results to satisfy our clients.
Commencement of Workers’ Compensation Benefits After Sustaining a Job-Related Injury
Workers can receive both medical and wage replacement benefits through workers’ compensation insurance in Broward County. Medical benefits start almost immediately after the injury. This means that you won’t have to put your medical treatments on hold while you wait for approval. However, rules concerning wage replacement are different. Wage replacement benefits are received when you become unfit to work due to injuries. In the case of total work disability, the wage replacement benefits are two-thirds of the amount of your average weekly wages before you got injured. If you’re forced to work with restrictions and cannot earn the same amount, these benefits are equivalent to a percentage of the difference between the average pre-injury wages and average post-injury wages.
You will typically start getting wage replacement benefits a week after the disability has been confirmed. Wages for the first seven days will not be paid except if you’ve been disabled for more than 21 days due to the injury.
Factors Impacting Employee Injury Compensation
All the various types of benefits that an employee can receive under workers compensation are stated under Florida law. However, the value of the payment you are entitled to receive depends on numerous factors, such as the nature of the injury, the way it occurred, and, most importantly, the type of legal guidance you have.
Seeking immediate counseling from an insurance expert is also a critical step in the process since there are several aspects that need to be accounted for with respect to the injury. Your medical condition and the chances to return to work will also affect the health and monetary compensation you receive.
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Contact our GGA team today for your no-obligation analysis & consultation.
Broward County Workers’ Compensation Claim Denials
Once you’re aware of the reasons why the insurance company denied your claim, you can take the necessary steps to overcome your previous mistakes and challenge the denial more effectively.
Broward County workers’ compensation insurance statutes clearly state that workers must immediately report an injury. However, if for some reason that isn’t possible, then they must notify their employers within 30 days of suffering the harm. Failure to do so or exceeding the 30-day limit can get your claim denied by the insurance company.
In several cases of work-related injuries or illnesses, workers don’t realize the damage until after a considerable period of time. Similarly, some workers fail to notice that their injury or illness is due to their work operations. In both cases, if you make a claim after the 30-day period has passed, your insurance claim can be denied.
As suggested earlier, workers’ compensation benefits are only awarded to employees who acquire an injury or illness while performing an activity that falls under the requirements of employment. If you suffered an injury in your personal time or during lunch hours, you cannot be eligible for workers’ compensation benefits. However, depending on the nature of your injury, you may still be liable for some other form of compensation.
Moreover, it isn’t necessary for you to be doing some sort of physical labor when you get injured. Florida law clarifies that your injury or illness must occur “within the scope of employment” to be eligible for workers’ compensation benefits. To learn more about Broward County workers’ compensation insurance benefits, contact our team today for your free quote and consultation.
To receive benefits of workers’ compensation Broward County, you first have to provide proof of your injury or illness. This includes your medical records that state the type and severity of your injury, outline your treatment plans, and show a clear association between the injury and employment. The absence of adequate medical records can get your claim denied.
Besides that, if your insurance claim is inaccurate or incomplete in any way, the insurance company can end up denying your claim. This comprises unfinished data spaces such as the date or signature on your form or the deprivation of necessary documentation to support your claim.
Another reason for your workers’ compensation getting denied is if you’re already diagnosed with a pre-existing health issue. If you were already going through an ailment or disease before getting injured or sick due to work activities, there’s a strong chance that your claim will be rejected.
However, workers compensation does not always put aside all claims solely because the worker was found to have a prior medical condition. If your previously identified health issue has become worse than how it was at the time of diagnosis or if it played a role in how you got hurt or sick at work, then you can still claim benefits.
lets talk workers compensation options
Contact our insurance specialists today to discuss your coverage requirements and explore the different ways you can protect your employees from harm.
If your employee was recently injured due to a workplace accident, they may be legally entitled to workers’ compensation benefits. Neglecting their rights may land your business in legal trouble, as those employees can end up suing your company, tarnishing its reputation in the process. Obtaining these benefits can help employees receive adequate medical coverage for a swift recovery, assisting them to get back to work in no time.
Contact us today to learn more about Broward County workers compensation. Connect with our experts as they evaluate your business requirements to draft a comprehensive coverage plan for your employees.
Frequently asked questions
Oftentimes, injured employees exceed the coverage limit of medical expenses reserved for them. When this happens, they may be required to pay $10 out of their own pocket for each medical visit after that day. However, this rule is not applied to workers if they’re rushed to a hospital in an emergency.
According to Florida law, workers must alert their employers of an injury within a 30-day cap from the date of the injury. Exceeding this duration to make a claim or report the incident to the employer can give legitimate grounds to the insurance company to cancel or deny your claims.
Florida law states that for the first seven days of your disability, regardless of its nature, you will not be compensated for the lost wages. However, if you continue to miss work because your disability lasted for over 21 days, you may be recompensed for the first seven days as well.
There is no legal requirement for you to pay income tax on the money received by the insurance company as lost wages. But, if you are permitted to return to work for light or limited duty while being under the care of the assigned doctor, paying taxes on the wages earned is mandatory.
Yes, there are no reservations against receiving both benefits simultaneously. However, there is a possibility of an offset or reduction in the amount of workers’ compensation benefits since the law states that the combined benefits of the two should not exceed 80% of the average weekly wage earned before sustaining the injury.
An impairment rating is a degree or percentage assigned to you as an injured employee representing the extent to which you are under regular use of a body part or its function. An impairment rating is only appointed when you lose some degree of function in a part of your body due to a work-related injury.
It is up to your business’ insurance company to choose a doctor to treat injured employees. If employees are not satisfied with the doctor they have selected, they are permitted a second option. To gain that opportunity, they can request the insurance company for a one-time replacement of the doctor.
Medical professionals are not permitted to charge you for expenses directly under workers compensation Broward County. In the same way, creditors cannot bill you in pursuit of pocketing consumer debt, once they’re made aware that you’re under the protection of counsel concerning the alleged debt.
