Are you allowed to pursue a personal injury claim for damages if you are hurt in a car or truck accident that was not your fault, while you were on the job?
Yes, you can and should pursue both a workers’ compensation claim and a personal injury claim if you are injured and the other driver is at fault.
It is very important, however, that you and your lawyer must give proper notice to all parties involved – you must report the accident to your employer and seek medical treatment at an authorized “posted panel” physician. And you must file a claim for personal injuries with the other driver’s insurance company.
You are eligible to received lost wage benefits and medical care from the workers’ compensation insurance company, and you are also eligible to recover money damages for pain and suffering from the at-fault driver’s insurance company.
Where you receive medical care can have a huge impact on both your workers’ compensation settlement and your personal injury settlement. Often the doctors that employers use to treat work injuries are very focused on minimizing the severity of your injuries and returning you to full duty work status quickly.
Further, since pain and suffering are not compensable in your workers’ compensation case, the workers’ compensation doctor may not mention your pain complaints at all in his notes.
Generally speaking, medical records from a posted panel workers’ compensation doctor will not help you prove pain and suffering damages.
Therefore it sometimes makes sense to seek treatment from a different doctor to document your pain complaints. Or we can try to identify a doctor who understands the importance of discussing pain complaints in your medical records so that your injury claims can be fully and fairly documented for both workers’ compensation and personal injury.
Ginsberg Law can represent you in both claims – Georgia workers’ compensation and a liability claim against the at-fault driver and his insurance company. If you were hurt at work while driving and your injuries were caused by the other driver, please call me for advice about how to give proper notice so that you can maximize your recovery.