When you’re injured in an accident on the job in California, you need to report this injury and accident to your employer immediately. This may also be the start of the process of your workman’s compensation claim. As a new claimant, you likely have plenty of questions about the benefits you’re entitled to, especially if you’ve suffered a career-ending injury on the job.
After your case is reviewed, there are a variety of different things that may occur. You may be approved for benefits. Ultimately, you may also be eligible for a settlement under your workers’ compensation case in California. There are two primary types of settlements that workers are eligible for, known as compromise and release, and stipulations with request for award.
A compromise and release involves a one-time lump sum payment of benefits that happens immediately. With a stipulation and a request for award however, benefits owed to you are paid over a period of months or years, and you remain entitled to reopen your claim in the event that your medical condition gets worse within five years of the date of the injury.
You are not eligible to reopen your claim with a compromise and release. Furthermore, if you pursue the stipulation and award route, you can continue working at the same employer. In plenty of cases, insurance companies are unwilling to agree to a compromise and release if the employee stays at the same company.
If you have further questions about filing a workers’ compensation claim, communicate with an experienced and dedicated workers’ comp lawyer in San Francisco now to learn more.