Tips on Workers compensation benefits and how to handle it your self in Virginia

Here are 10 tips:

 

1. Document, document, document.  Get specific names and phone numberse and fill out the job search chart completely.
2. Keep copies of evidence of job searching, along with the chart.
3. Look for 10 jobs a week.  If you are only looking for 5 jobs and the Deputy Commissioner finds that your job search was not valid, you lose and you don’t get a second chance.  With 10 job searches, it will be very difficult for the insurance company’s attorney to find flaws in 6 of them.
4. Follow up after you file job applications a week later and document the outcome.
5. Sign up with the Virginia Employment Commission.  Even if you aren’t eligible for benefits.
6. Look for jobs in as many places as you can:  Online, in newspapers, in person, through friends, and make sure you document the source.
7. Ask your current employer for a light duty job, even if you already know they won’t and document the phone call.
8. Turn in your job search chart weekly to your attorney.  I fax them to the insurance adjuster or their attorney weekly.  I do this to prove you are consistently looking for employment and that you didn’t make the job searches up at a later date.
9. Don’t solely look online but some great places to look are craigslist.com, monster.com and yahoojobs.com
10. Avoid making any statements to doctors, nurses, and/or adjustor about the stupidity of documentation.  It is very sad to say but it does not matter if you find a job, only that you look for a job per the rules.