When you’re injured and want to seek compensation, it can be difficult to determine the exact nature of your case. While your personal injury attorney will help you determine this, it’s still important to understand the basics of injury cases. Personal injury and workers compensation are two of the most common types of claims that lawyers handle.
But what is the difference between the two?
Personal injury cases require fault…
That’s the key factor that sets these types of cases apart. Most of the time, to prove that someone else is responsible for your injury, you need to prove that they were being negligent. For example, in an auto accident, you must prove that the other driver was acting with negligence to be entitled to damages. The benefit of this is that when you do prove entitlement to the damages, you are also entitled to recover damages in full. Common personal injury cases may include:
- Car accidents
- Dog bites
- Slip and fall injuries
- Product liability
- Drunk driving accidents
When handling a personal injury case, it’s important to work with a qualified lawyer, since only 4-5% of these cases go to trial. The rest are settled out of court.
Workers compensation claims are not based on fault…
While you need to prove negligence in personal injury cases, this is not necessary in workers compensation cases. Depending on the company and state of practice, employees injured on the job are generally entitled to workers compensation whenever they are injured at work. Reception of damages is also set up differently in most situations. Generally, employees receive payments in increments, often weekly. Common workers compensation cases include, but are not limited to:
- Overuse injuries
- Slips, trips, and falls
- Machinery accidents
- Highway accident
- Workplace violence
They key to understanding your rights as a worker is also understanding your workplace policy and state laws. Be sure to work with a qualified lawyer when entering a workers compensation case.
No matter your injury, a personal injury attorney will be able to guide you through your legal options and help you get closer to the compensation you deserve. Your life should not be put on hold because of one incident. This is why taking legal action is often worth it.