March 21, 2025
Eventually, most job injury victims can expect a settlement. About 90 percent of workers’ compensation claims settle out of court. However, as outlined below, settlement is a process, not a result. Workers’ comp is no-fault insurance that pays benefits to victims with job-related illnesses or injuries. So, although insurance companies cannot contest liability (legal responsibility), at least in most cases, they can and do bitterly contest damages (amount of benefits). Workers’ compensation benefits include lost wage replacement and medical bill payment. Lost wages are based on the AWW (average weekly wage), a figure many insurance company lawyers intentionally miscalculate. As for medical bills, workers’ comp rules require insurance companies to pay “reasonably necessary” expenses, a phrase many adjusters translate as “cheapest possible.”…