Birmingham Workers Compensation Lawyer
If you are a worker who has been injured while working in Birmingham or any of the surrounding areas in Alabama, you already know how devastating a workplace injury can be to both you and your family.
After an injury, you may face significant health, job, and financial concerns. Many workers find they are left confused and frustrated after with insurance companies, Human Resource managers, and claims representatives.
Fortunately, most workers in Birmingham are covered under Alabama’s Workers’ Compensation Act and are entitled to receive compensation for injuries they suffer in the workplace.
If you have been injured at work a Birmingham injury lawyer can help you work with doctors, insurance companies claim representatives and Human resource managers. Our Birmingham workers’ compensation lawyers are prepared to answer all your questions and help you and your family in these difficult times.
Workers’ Compensation in Birmingham
Alabama Worker’s Compensation Act was enacted to protect workers who suffer an injury or health condition in the workplace by providing them with coverage for medical expenses, lost wages, and death benefits.
The workers’ compensation laws in Birmingham cover all employers who employ more than four employees, regardless if they are part-time or full-time employees, and requires employers to provide workers’ compensation coverage.
Compensation and Benefits
The workers’ compensation laws are designed to reimburse employees who are injured from accidents arising out of and in the course of employment. Under this Act, if an employee suffers an injury or an occupational disease, they may be entitled to benefits from three general categories 1) compensatory, 2) medical, and 3) death.
A Birmingham workers’ compensation lawyer can help an employee recover any of the following types of compensation following a workplace accident:
Compensatory benefits are designed to compensate a worker for an injury or occupational disease they sustained during the course of their employment. Under this category of benefits a worker may be entitled to benefits from any of the following four categories:
- Temporary partial disability payments in the amount of two-thirds of the employees earning capacity.
- Temporary total disability payments in the amount of two-thirds of an employee’s average weekly earnings.
- Permanent partial disability payments at a maximum rate of $220 per week.
- Permanent total disability payments equal to two-thirds of an employee’s total weekly earnings at the time of the injury.
- Permanent total disability payments at a maximum of 66 and 2/3% of an employee’s average weekly wage.
Medical benefits – Under the Alabama Workers’ Compensation Act medical compensation for a workplace injury or occupational disease include the cost of all reasonably necessary medical treatment. This includes:
- The actual cost of medical treatment
- Medicine
- Medical supplies
- Surgical services
- Rehabilitation
- Assistive devices.
Death benefits – It is a sad reality that some employees die during the course of their employment because of a work-related accident.
In these cases the Alabama Workers’ Compensation Act provides that if an employee dies within three years of a work-related accident, the employee’s dependents can receive up to 50 percent of the employees average weekly earnings, if there is only one dependent, and up to two-thirds of an employee’s weekly earnings if there are two or more dependents.
How Long Do You Have To File a Claim?
It is very important for an injured worker to understand that regardless of the type or severity of their injury, there is only a certain amount of time to file a workers’ compensation claim with their employer.
Under the Alabama Workers’ Compensation Act, an injured employee must provide their employer with a written notification of their injury within five days of the accident.
This is extremely crucial to understand because if an employee fails to provide their employer with some form of notification within this brief time-period, they may not be able to recover for medical fees and certain forms of compensation.
In addition, an employee has two years from the date of their injury to file a workers’ compensation claim with their employer.
Contact a Birmingham Workers’ Compensation Attorney Today
If you or a loved one has been injured or suffered an occupational disease while on the job, contact an experienced and dedicated Birmingham Workers’ Compensation lawyer today.
Our workers’ compensation lawyers can help answer all your questions and address all your concerns when you have been injured at work.
