Off-Site Injuries
Workers' compensation benefits will apply towards any work related injury, which often refers to any injury sustained while at the workplace. However, it is not uncommon for many employees to have rather mobile jobs, which requires them to either work from a vehicle or to travel to other work sites separate from a central building. When an injury occurs in what may be considered an off-site location, it can difficult to receive benefits because the employer or insurance carrier may dispute the nature of the injury and contest the idea that it was work-related. These injuries can be more complicated than a typical workplace injury, and may result in a disagreement with the insurance carrier, and is even more likely to be misrepresented on an application than a typical injury.
Benefits for Off-Site Injuries
If the claim is contested, the employee will be responsible for showing that the injury or illness occurred during or as a result of work-related duties, which do not necessarily apply to those which occur at a single work location. An off-site injury claim will likely result in a few of the following steps:
Work-related - perhaps the most difficult aspect of such injuries, which requires the employee to demonstrate that their injury was directly related to the work they were doing.
Application - not only does the employee have to convince the insurance carrier of the work-related nature of the injury, but they must also represent it correctly on their application so that it is not rejected out of hand as an error.
Appeals - should the carrier dispute the injury, the employee may very likely need to submit an appeal if their initial application is rejected. This avenue may result in litigation, for which the worker should seek legal representation.
Receiving Benefits
For complicated injury claims such as off-site injuries, workers are likely to benefit from consulting a New Jersey workers' compensation lawyer for assistance in filing an initial claim and legal representation if an appeal becomes necessary.