You might be able to achieve a settlement for your workers’ compensation claim. Many people are confused about how these settlements are determined. Workers’ compensation settlements are completely voluntary, which means that you cannot always rely on this alone since the workers’ comp insurance company and your employer do not have to agree to settle out the claim.
Furthermore, you do not have to agree with the settlement offer that was suggested by the insurance company or the employer. The most important thing about coming to a workers’ compensation settlement is to be aware of the types of benefits you are entitled to and what rights you might be giving up.
There are many different types of benefits that can be accessed in a workers’ compensation claim, including permanent partial disability, unpaid medical bills and temporary total disability.
There are two major types of settlement agreements that might affect your San Francisco workers’ compensation claim; structured settlements and lump sums. In a structured settlement, you get smaller payments received over a period of time, whereas a lump sum involves a one-time payment made from the insurance company or the employer.
Determining whether or not it is appropriate to take this settlement should always begin with remembering that a settlement is a guaranteed benefit. If you don’t take the settlement and your case goes all the way up to the workers’ comp appeals board or beyond, you may have little or no benefits depending on your success in that process. Schedule a consultation with a San Francisco workers’ compensation attorney to get your questions answered today.