How Workers’ Compensation Carriers in Colorado Prey On Injured Workers

Apr 21, 2018 | WC & Other Laws

How do attorneys tend to pitch their services…they tell potential clients that insurance carriers will take advantage of their knowledge of the system and the injured workers’ lack of knowing the system. There is no truer example of this than the following:

In CO, when an injured worker is assigned a psychological impairment that results from a work-related injury, their compensation benefits, typically, are limited to 12 weeks of the injured worker’s weekly wage loss benefits. For example, an injured worker who receives $500 per week in wage loss benefits and receives a 5% psych. impairment that equates to $15,000 in compensation benefits; is typically limited to $6000 [$500 x 12 weeks]. HOWEVER, THERE ARE 2 EXCEPTIONS TO THE RULE LIMITING THE INJURED WORKER’S COMPENSATION BENEFITS in this context.  One, which I will discuss herein, is that IF the psych. impairment results from a “crime of violence”, the limitation DOES NOT apply.  In other words, if the injured worker was assaulted at work, their compensation is not limited to 12 weeks.

So why do I feel compelled to write all of this? It certainly in dry and boring, but here is my point.  I had a client of mine who was assaulted at work.  The worker’s compensation carrier KNOWING THAT MY CLIENT WAS ASSAULTED limited her benefits to 12 weeks.  Because we are experts in workers’ compensation, we “corrected” the carrier’s lack of understanding (a kind way of stating that we didn’t let the carrier screw our client) and forced them to admit for the correct amount of benefits which yielded an additional $11,000.  Without our assistance, our client would never have known that they were getting taken advantage of and being stripped of the benefits they were entitled. THIS TYPE OF STUFF HAPPENS ALL OF THE TIME.  WHETHER YOU CONSIDER THIS A PITCH OR CONSIDER THIS A SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT TO THE COMMUNITY,  KNOWLEDGE IS POWER; USE IT!