Most people hurt on the job in California file for workers’ comp and stop there. That makes sense, because workers’ comp is usually the only claim you can bring against your own employer. But your employer is not always the only one at fault. When someone else caused your injury, you may have a second, separate claim against them. It can be worth far more than workers’ comp alone.
The limits of workers’ comp
Workers’ comp is a trade-off. You get medical care and part of your lost wages without having to prove anyone was careless. In return, you generally cannot sue your employer, and you cannot collect for your pain and suffering. The checks are steady, but they are capped, and they leave a lot on the table for a serious injury.
A third-party claim plays by different rules. If a company other than your employer caused your injury, you can hold that company fully responsible, pain and suffering included.
Who the third party might be
On a lot of job injuries, an outside party had a hand in it. A defective machine or tool points to the maker that built it. A crash while driving for work points to the other driver. A fall on a poorly kept property points to whoever owned or ran it. A subcontractor on a shared site, or a delivery company visiting your workplace, can be to blame too.
The question worth asking after any work injury is simple. Did anyone other than my employer help cause this?
You can pursue both at once
Here is the part that changes cases. You do not have to choose. You can collect workers’ comp for your medical bills and lost wages. At the same time, you can pursue a third-party claim for everything workers’ comp does not cover. The two work together.
There are rules about paying back some of the workers’ comp benefits out of a third-party recovery. Even after that, injured workers often come out far ahead by running both.
Ask the question before it is too late
Third-party claims have their own deadlines, usually separate from your workers’ comp case. The evidence, like that defective machine, also has a way of disappearing. So it pays to ask early whether anyone besides your employer was responsible.
If you were hurt at work in California and someone other than your boss may have caused it, find out whether a second claim exists. Koszdin, Fields & Sherry has helped injured workers across Los Angeles and the Valley sort out exactly this since 1955. Call 818-781-1503 for a free review of what happened.
