There are some injuries, however, that may not be covered by workers' compensation. State courts are divided on whether an employee can recover for an injury sustained during horseplay at work. Many states will not award benefits to a person who is injured while intoxicated or who deliberately inflicts injury on himself. Furthermore, an employee who is injured while traveling to or from work is not generally entitled to benefits unless the employer has agreed to provide the worker with the means of transportation, pay the employee's cost of commuting, or if travel is required while performing his/her duties.

If a worker leaves the employer's premises to do a personal errand and is injured, he or she might not be entitled to workers' compensation benefits. However, if an employee is injured while returning from company-sponsored education classes, or goes to the restroom, visits the cafeteria, has a coffee break, or steps out of a nonsmoking office to smoke a cigarette, and is injured, workers' compensation boards and courts typically recognize that employers benefit from these "nonbusiness" employee conveniences, and often award compensation.

What To Do If You Think You Have a Claim

Here are the first steps you should take if you are injured on the job:

Report the injury to your employer
If possible, report the injury in writing and keep a copy of the report for personal records.

Complete a claim form
No matter how your employer learns of the incident, it must offer you a claim form immediately. Until this claim form is completed, the employer has no obligation to provide you benefits. Make sure the claim form is filled out completely and specifically. Keep a copy of your completed claim form. Once your employer receives your claim form, it is then the employer's responsibility to immediately notify its workers' compensation insurance company and arrange medical assistance for you.

File the claim as soon as possible
If you are seeking to claim workers' compensation benefits, you should do so quickly. Any delay on your part could lead to potential snags or delays in receiving benefits. Immediately reporting injuries and filing a claim as soon as you decide to seek compensation increases the likelihood that benefits will begin quickly.

If a dispute should arise regarding the claim, you can seek help from the workers' compensation commissioner's office in your state, but you may also want to contact an experienced workers' compensation attorney. If you are unhappy with the decision in a hearing that was held to determine some aspect of your workers' compensation claim, procedures exist for you to appeal the unfavorable result. In some states, your first appeal must be made to a workers' compensation court of appeals. Once the workers' compensation appeals has made its ruling, or if no such appeals court exists, an appeal to your state's court can usually be commenced if you are still unsatisfied with the results of your workers' compensation case.

Getting Help With a Workers' Compensation Claim

The workers' compensation system of laws is designed to provide a straightforward method for employees to receive compensation for work-related injuries. However, workers' compensation laws vary from state to state, and have quite specific procedural requirements. If you have been injured at work, contacting a lawyer who specializes in workers' compensation or personal injury law is the best way to ensure that your rights will be protected. A lawyer can protect your rights in many ways. For example, if someone other than your employer or co-worker was partly at fault for your injury, you may be able to file a liability insurance claim against that person or business.

Additionally, if your accident is not covered by workers' compensation (for example, if you are an independent contractor or because the company does not have workers' compensation insurance), you may be entitled to bring legal action against someone for whom you were working, just as you could file a claim against any other person who caused you personal injury. In such a case, you may be able to recover compensation that you couldn't recover in a workers' compensation claim, including attorney fees, compensation for pain and suffering, and punitive damages (damages to punish the party who injured you).

Go here to learn more about the role of an attorney in a workers' compensation case.

Click here to find an experienced workers' compensation attorney near you.

See also:

• Workers' Compensation: Can I Sue My Employer Instead?
• Public Employees and Workers' Compensation