If you get injured on the job, don’t procrastinate talking to your boss or your supervisor. Report the injury. Make your employer aware of the accident.
This often happens naturally for serious injuries. For instance, if you suffer a spinal cord injury in a fall and you have to be transported to the hospital from the work site, your employer is going to know what happened. But you still need to make an official report, and there are many other minor cases in which it may not be clear that you’ve been hurt on the job. Below are three deadlines to keep in mind.
180 days
First and foremost, you have a maximum of 180 days to make this report. This is the statute of limitations for workers’ comp. It begins when you get injured or when you become aware of your injuries. Even a valid case could be denied if you wait more than 180 days.
14 days
The next deadline to be aware of is 14 days, which is how long you have to make an “on time” report. Your employer can’t use late notice as a reason to deny your claim. It may be best to make the report just a day or two later, but you still have a valid case as long as it’s done within 14 days.
30 days
Finally, the 30-day mark is important. When you are between 15 and 30 days, the claim could be denied if your employer thinks that the delay harmed the case. If you exceeded 30 days but are still under the 180-day maximum, your employer could claim that you provided late notice – which you may need to justify.
Overall, the best thing to do is just to report your injuries as soon as possible. But you can see why it’s important to understand the legal process.
