Car Accidents on the Job in Port St. Lucie

For Port St. Lucie residents, sales and office administration are two of the most common occupations. The city has shown significant growth in recent years, partly due to its coastal location and its popular tourist attractions. For busy sales representatives and office administrators, driving on the job is a common component of the daily workload. Whether you are calling on a client, running an important errand for your employer, or taking colleagues to a work meeting, time spent driving on the job can add up quickly. Unfortunately, this means that the risk of being involved in a car accident on the job can be quite high for Port St. Lucie residents. If you are injured on the job, you are entitled to receive a weekly benefit payment to help offset your lost wages. At Donaldson & Weston, our Port St. Lucie workers’ compensation attorneys have assisted many car accident victims with asserting their right to benefits, and we are ready to do the same for you.

If you have been injured in a car accident on the job, it is essential that you notify your employer and seek medical treatment immediately. Your employer will next notify its workers’ compensation carrier that you have been injured. The insurer will assign an adjuster to your claim, who will investigate the nature and extent of your injury and determine whether you are entitled to benefits. The first step of this process typically involves undergoing a medical exam by an approved health care professional. This exam is critically important to your claim because the doctor’s evaluation will be used to determine whether your injury is covered, the amount of benefits that you are entitled to receive, and the estimated duration of those payments. You should answer the doctor’s questions completely to ensure that they have a thorough picture of your injury and impairment. The doctor will then make a determination regarding whether your injury is a total or partial disability and whether it is temporary or permanent.

The amount of benefits that you receive following a car accident on the job is calculated according to a statutory schedule. In most cases, you are entitled to receive two-thirds of your average weekly wage. In some cases involving a severe injury, you may receive 80 percent of your average weekly wage. You are eligible to receive these payments for up to 104 weeks, or until your doctor determines that you have reached the point of maximum medical improvement. If you are still unable to work due to your condition, you may be eligible for other types of benefits like Social Security Disability.

In addition to lost wages, injured workers can receive reimbursement for the medical expenses that they incur in relation to the accident. Car crashes can lead to serious injuries for victims, including head trauma, broken bones, back injuries, paralysis, amputations, and even death. Florida’s workers’ compensation system allows you to recover compensation for any medical expenses that you incur, including emergency medical care immediately after the accident, hospitalizations, doctor’s appointments, medications, physical therapy, and mileage traveling to and from the appointments.

If you have suffered severe injuries that may never truly heal, it is important to ensure that you keep your future medical needs in mind. Although a lump sum settlement may seem like a good idea, it may not provide you with enough compensation to care for your injuries in the future. A dedicated workers’ compensation lawyer can assist you with determining the appropriate course of action for your claim.