Woodland Hills Police Officer Injury Lawyer

Police officers risk their lives daily to serve their communities—keeping the peace is an extremely dangerous job. Police officers are often injured at work, and their injuries can be life-altering if not life-threatening. Police officers who are injured while on the job can be entitled to worker’s compensation benefits. Working with a Woodland Hills police officer injury lawyer can help you file an effective worker’s compensation claim to obtain the benefits you deserve.

Since our founding, our practice has been dedicated to protecting the rights of police officers, public sector workers, and individuals of all backgrounds who have been injured at work. At Barry Law Group, we aim to identify legal solutions that ensure our clients’ needs and rights are cared for and that adequate compensation is awarded to those who deserve it. Our firm can work tirelessly on your behalf to claim the necessary worker’s compensation you deserve.

Worker’s Compensation Benefits

Some key benefits available to police officers in Woodland Hills include medical care and treatment, permanent disability benefits, temporary disability benefits, supplemental job displacement benefits, and death benefits.

• Medical care and treatments: These expenses can include necessary medical care treatment, therapy, surgery, hospitalization, and long-term care
• Permanent disability benefits: These benefits can be calculated using factors such as the police officer’s earning capacity and the severity of the injury or disability.
• Temporary disability benefits: These benefits often amount to two-thirds of the injured police officer’s wages, and they are often capped at a specific maximum dollar amount.
• Supplemental job displacement benefits: These benefits include payments that help with retraining or skill enhancement required for those police officers who do not completely recover from their injury.
• Death benefits: In the event that a police officer is killed while serving, the officer’s surviving family members may be entitled to receive death benefits. These can often include a lump sum payment, lost wages, and funeral expenses.

The Worker’s Compensation Claim Process

Police officers who have been injured or involved in an accident while on the job may be eligible for worker’s compensation benefits. The first recommended step in initiating a proper worker’s compensation claim is to inform your employer. In most instances, this must be done within 30 days of the sustainment of the injury or illness. The sooner, the better, but it is important to keep in mind that if you wait until after 30 days, you risk your claim becoming invalid.

Once your claim is reported to your employer, they should provide you with the necessary paperwork for you to complete. You can fill out this paperwork once all the required information is gathered. This information includes, but is not limited to, medical reports from physicians or doctors, reports from all applicable witnesses, and any other relevant evidence related to your case.

Once the necessary information is gathered and the paperwork is filled out, the claim can be filed with your employer. Your employer will then submit the required paperwork to the insurance provider for a claim. If approved, worker’s compensation benefits can be received for medical bills related to the injury or accident, and any lost wages can be recovered from the period in which the injury occurred.

FAQs

Q: Who Enforces Workers’ Compensation in California?

A: The Division of Workers’ Compensation is responsible for the administration of compensation claims regarding workers’ compensation. The division helps to provide administrative and judicial services.

These services can include assisting in resolving disputes in connection with claims for workers’ compensation benefits. In certain circumstances, the California Department of Insurance can investigate denials of worker’s compensation claims or submissions that may be fraudulent.

Q: What Are Presumptive Injuries for Police Officers?

A: In short, presumptive injuries are injuries that do not require the burden of proof from the worker. The burden of proof is often shifted to the employer or defendant to rebut the presumption.

Within Labor Code Sections 3212 and 3213 are descriptions of presumptive injuries, which include heart trouble, back trouble, cancer, tuberculosis, pneumonia, hernias, and diseases caused by bloodborne pathogens. It is important that police officers work with skilled and experienced injury lawyers who are knowledgeable about the legal nuances concerning presumptive injuries.

Q: What Is the Most Common Call Type That Result in Injuries to Police Officers?

A: The most common types of calls that result in injuries to police officers include family violence calls and robbery calls. Domestic violence calls are often high-intensity situations, and in some cases, one of the individuals could be armed. Robbery calls are consistently the most dangerous calls for police officers, and it is not uncommon for them to result in the death of the officer. In these types of calls, an individual is often armed, increasing the potential for serious injuries to law enforcement.

Q: What Injuries Are Not Covered by Workers’ Compensation in California?

A: Injuries that are not covered by worker’s compensation in California include injuries related to stress or psychiatric disorders that are not associated with another injury. Other injuries that are not covered by worker’s compensation in the state are self-inflicted injuries, injuries that may be caused by horseplay, injuries resulting from the influence of alcohol or substances, and any injuries that occur while violating company policies.

Worker’s Comp for Police Officers

If you are a police officer who has been injured while serving your community, you need compensation for your medical expenses, lost wages, or other costs that you’ve incurred as a result of the injury. Each step of the worker’s compensation process has strict deadlines, and it takes a qualified worker’s compensation attorney to process your claim smoothly.

Working with an experienced attorney can help ensure that your claim is filed appropriately and on time in order to receive the maximum eligible benefits possible for your claim. If you have experienced an injury on the job and believe you may be entitled to worker’s compensation benefits, don’t wait. Schedule a consultation with Barry Law Group to review your situation, discuss potential options, and file a claim.