What is filing a workers' compensation claim in Virginia?

WHY YOU MUST FILE A CLAIM IN A VIRGINIA WORKERS' COMPENSATION CASE?

If an injured employee contacts the Virginia Workers' Compensation Commission after an injury, he or she may be informed that the employee can "file a claim for the injury" and the Commission will mail the employee the form or it can be filed on-line.

The Virginia form contains a Part A and a Part B. Part A asks for the information about the accident. Part B asks what benefits the employee is seeking.

Under Virginia workers' compensation law "a claim" must be filed with the Commission within two (2) years of the date of the accident or the claim will be time-barred.

In a recent case the injured employee only filed Part A within the two (2) year time period. Later the employee asked for wage compensation for a period within the first two (2) years. The insurance company defended stating the employee had not filed Part B of the claim form asking for wage compensation within two (2) years of the accident. The Virginia Court of Appeals disagreed with the insurance company holding filing Part A within the two (2) time limit was enough to constitute filing a claim.

FOR MORE INFORMATION: contact Jerry Lutkenhaus at (804) 358-4766 or at 1(800)-256-8862 (toll-free) or visit our website at Virginia Workers' Compensation Lawyer.