Checklist for Handling Workers' Compensation Claims

Every business owner should be prepared for the day when an employee may be injured in a work-related accident. No matter how safe you try to make the workplace, no matter how careful you are in hiring people, accidents sometimes just plain happen. What you do immediately following the accident takes on added significance when you own the business. The normal human responses, such as getting immediate medical assistance, must be augmented by actions designed to protect your business. The actions you take, or neglect to take, can prove critical to your financial future. Taking the time to do the right things, and to document that you have done so, is some of the most effective insurance you can get.

The attached file contains a checklist intended to guide you through the steps you need to take from the moment you become aware that an employee has been injured until the issue, and its financial repercussions, have been finally resolved. By taking affirmative steps to keep on top of the situation, you can minimize your exposure to unwarranted claims and expenses.

Also included in the attached file is a document that sets forth a number of factors that should be kept in mind at all times when dealing with an employee injury. This list highlights a number of common indications that a worker's claim might be fraudulent. Although only a small fraction of workers' compensation claims are fraudulent, the cases that do occur are expensive, cut into your business's productivity, and can send your workers' compensation premiums sky high. By being sensitive to the possibility that any claim might be fraudulent, you reduce your risk that a fraudulent claim, however rare, gets by undetected.

File Description:
The file is in Adobe Portable Document Format (.pdf), and you will need the free Acrobat Reader to view and print the files.

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Workers' compensation claims

More information:
What To Do When Accidents Happen
Workers' Compensation Fraud