If you suffer a work injury, it is important that you report the incident to your employer as soon as possible. You may be entitled to disability benefits and medical treatment paid for by your employer through a workers’ compensation claim, but your employer must be given notice.
In Illinois, workers have 45 days to report work injuries to their employers. However, the longer a worker waits to do so, the less successful the outcome of his or her claim may become. An employer may challenge whether an injury happened at work if it does not receive notice when the injury happens.
Reports do not have to be put into writing, but it is better if they are. That way, an employer is less able to deny that it received notice of a work injury.
Reports of work injuries must be made to somebody in a position of authority, such as a supervisor, a manager, or a human resources director. Reporting your injury to a coworker is not sufficient.
Finally, to help make your workers’ compensation claim successful, we recommend that you hire an attorney with experience dealing with work injuries, like the workers’ compensation attorneys at GWC Injury Lawyers.
As Illinois’ largest Workers’ Compensation and Personal Injury law firm, GWC prosecutes a wide variety of injury cases throughout Illinois, including those involving work accidents, automobile collisions, medical malpractice, and product liability. If you or your loved one has been injured, at work or at some other location, please contact our office for a free legal consultation to see if you may be eligible for financial compensation for your injuries.
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