Orange County Amazon Workplace Injury Lawyer

Amazon is one of the largest employers in the United States, and thousands of people working in the Orange County area of California are employed by Amazon in various capacities. If you or a family member worked for Amazon and suffered any type of injury while working, it is essential to know how an Orange County Amazon workplace injury lawyer can assist you with your recovery efforts following this incident.

Experienced Legal Counsel for Work Injury Claims in Orange County, CA

Pratt Law Corporation has cultivated a strong professional reputation in Orange County as a leading choice for legal counsel in workers’ compensation cases. We have successfully assisted many past clients in their recovery efforts following all types of work-related injuries and know the challenges you are likely to face after an Amazon workplace injury.

Your recovery may require filing a workers’ compensation claim and/or a civil suit against the party responsible for causing your injury. When you choose our firm to represent your case, you are investing in a dedicated legal advocate who can answer your questions, address your concerns, and provide valuable insights through all stages of your recovery efforts. The sooner you contact our firm for help, the more likely you are to maximize your recovery.

While it is technically possible to file a claim for workers’ compensation benefits without a lawyer, doing so is incredibly risky, and you would be unlikely to reach the same level of results as an experienced Orange County workers’ compensation attorney could obtain for you. Pratt Law Corporation will guide you through every stage of your recovery, from filing your claim to resolving disputes with the insurer and building a personal injury suit if necessary.

Can I Sue Amazon for an Injury at Work?

California law requires almost every employer in the state to have workers’ compensation, and this requirement extends to Amazon as well. While Amazon employs millions of people directly, the company also contracts through partner companies. Employees of these partner companies are likely covered by these employers’ workers’ compensation policies. The law does not require employers to cover independent contracts and certain other types of workers.

If you are covered by your employer’s workers’ compensation insurance, you have the right to file a claim for benefits after any type of injury sustained while working. As long as you were performing your work-related duties when the injury occurred, you are eligible to file a claim. This applies to an injury you caused yourself under the state’s no-fault rule for workers’ compensation.

Potential exceptions to this rule would be if you were working while under the influence of alcohol or drugs or if you intentionally violated workplace safety rules. If you have any concerns about your eligibility status based on the nature of your employment or if your injury qualifies for a claim, it is crucial to consult an Orange County workers’ compensation attorney as quickly as possible.

It is only possible to sue an employer for a work-related injury if they do not have workers’ compensation insurance as required by state law or if the employer intentionally caused your injury somehow. For example, if your supervisor compelled you to perform a task outside of your typical job duties that had virtual certainty to result in a serious injury, or if someone at work harmed you with an intentional act of violence, you could have justification for a civil suit.

Common Work-Related Injuries Among Amazon Employees

Amazon controls a vast network of warehouses, distribution centers, order fulfillment centers, and a fleet of delivery vehicles. It’s possible for work-related injuries to happen in many ways for Amazon employees:

• Warehouse and distribution center employees might have slip and fall accidents, acquire repetitive stress injuries from the manual tasks they perform every day, or suffer acute traumatic injuries from falling objects and other unexpected accidents in a warehouse.
• Delivery drivers for Amazon face the risk of vehicle accidents when completing their delivery routes. It is also possible for delivery drivers to suffer injuries from assault and violent crime.
• Office workers can also file workers’ compensation claims for injuries from repetitive stress or unexpected accidents in seemingly safe work environments.

As long as an injury or illness occurred through the course of performing your job duties, you are likely eligible to file a workers’ compensation claim. You are required to report any work-related injury within 30 days, and you must file your claim for workers’ compensation benefits within one year of the accident.

How to File Your Workers’ Compensation Claim for an Injury at Amazon

The first step in the workers’ compensation claim filing process is reporting the injury to your supervisor. You should report any work-related injury immediately so your employer can create an incident report. You will likely need to refer to this incident report later in your claim filing process. Once you report your injury, your supervisor is required to provide you with the materials you will need to file your claim.

If your employer denies you your claim forms, fires you, or otherwise interferes with your good faith request to file a workers’ compensation claim, this can form the basis for an employer retaliation claim. Some employers will attempt to discourage injured workers from filing workers’ compensation claims out of fear of rising insurance premiums. If you encounter any such issues, consult your Orange County workers’ compensation attorney.

When an employer upholds their responsibilities, they will provide their injured employee with the forms they will need to submit to the insurance carrier. As part of the claim filing process, you will likely be required to see a workers’ compensation physician who will evaluate your condition and assign you a disability rating. This rating will factor heavily into the insurance company’s determination of your benefits.

Once you have completed this medical review and all the required forms, you should be ready to file your claim. Your Orange County workers’ compensation attorney can help you with this process, and their support will be especially valuable if you encounter any problems with the insurance carrier’s handling of your claim.

Benefits Available Through Workers’ Compensation Insurance

The objective of a workers’ compensation claim is to secure the benefits you need to recover and return to work if you are medically capable of doing so once you reach maximum improvement from your injury. After filing your claim, the insurance company may request additional information and contact you and your employer about your injury.

If you encounter any resistance to your claim from the insurance carrier or if you believe they have treated you unfairly or acted in bad faith, your Orange County workers’ compensation attorney can help address these issues. If they handle the claim in good faith, they will process the claim and deliver their determination of benefits. Most injured workers will qualify to receive two forms of benefits once their claims are approved:

1. The injured worker can have all medical expenses related to their work injury covered by insurance. This includes all immediate healthcare expenses, such as hospital bills and ambulance fees, as well as any costs associated with long-term rehabilitative care they may need to reach full recovery.
2. The injured worker will receive disability benefits based on their inability to work or diminished earning capacity. Partial disability benefits are paid to claimants who can work but cannot earn as much income as usual due to their injury, and total disability benefits are paid to claimants who are unable to work at all until they recover.

If you are awarded partial disability benefits, you will need to report your earnings to your employer to maintain eligibility to continue receiving these benefits payments. Each payment amount will depend on how much you are able to earn and will continue until you regain your former earning capacity. Failure to meet your reporting requirements under a partial disability benefits determination could lead to early termination of benefits and other penalties.

If you have been awarded total disability benefits, you can expect to receive about two-thirds of your average weekly wage with each weekly benefits payment. California law allows these payments to continue for up to 104 weeks for most claimants, which they may elect to have spread over a five-year term. Benefits may continue past this deadline only if the claimant has suffered a catastrophic injury, and some such claimants can qualify for permanent disability.

Your Orange County workers’ compensation attorney can be an invaluable asset for ensuring a fair determination of workers’ compensation benefits from the insurance carrier. Additionally, while you may not be able to sue Amazon for your injury except under very specific circumstances, you could have grounds for a civil action against a third party responsible for your injury.

When to File a Personal Injury Claim for a Work-Related Injury in Orange County

Workers’ compensation insurance typically protects employers from civil liability for their injured workers’ damages. This means that if you are hurt while working, you cannot sue your employer, but there are some exceptions to this. However, it is more likely for an injured Amazon worker to have grounds for civil action against a third party who caused their injury.

For example, if you drive an Amazon delivery truck and you are struck by a drunk driver while performing your deliveries, this will count as a work-related accident, and you could file a workers’ compensation claim. However, because a third party outside of your work directly caused the injury, you would also have grounds to file a third-party personal injury suit against the drunk driver.

If you have any reason to believe any party outside of your work directly caused your injury, it is vital to consult your Orange County workers’ compensation attorney to determine whether you have grounds for a third-party personal injury claim. If so, you could potentially improve your total recovery from your injury by a substantial margin. However, proving fault will be essential to success with any personal injury claim filed.

Damages Available in a Personal Injury Claim

If you are able to prove fault for your recent injury at Amazon, a personal injury claim enables you to seek compensation for damages that workers’ compensation insurance won’t cover. For example, if you are able to file a workers’ compensation claim, this could yield compensation for your medical expenses but only limited compensation for your lost income. A personal injury claim could enable you to recover the rest of your lost wages.

California’s personal injury laws allow a plaintiff to claim full repayment of all economic damages sustained because of a defendant’s negligence or misconduct. Your Orange County workers’ compensation attorney can help identify all damages that your workers’ compensation claim can’t cover and assist you in holding the third-party defendant accountable for these losses.

One of the most significant aspects of a third-party personal injury claim is pain and suffering compensation, which is not obtainable through workers’ compensation insurance. There is no limit to how much pain and suffering compensation a plaintiff may seek in most personal injury claims, so the pain and suffering compensation you receive could substantially increase your total recovery.

The thought of pursuing a workers’ compensation claim and/or a personal injury suit in response to your work injury at Amazon may be daunting, but with the right attorney on your side, you can approach this difficult situation with confidence and peace of mind.

Pratt Law Corporation has years of experience helping injured workers across all industries with their workers’ compensation claims and related legal proceedings. If you have been injured while working for Amazon in any capacity, our team can ensure they respect your rights as a covered employee and facilitate your workers’ compensation claim under state law. We can provide ongoing support through every stage of your recovery efforts.

You have a limited time in which to pursue your recovery, and the sooner you connect with our team, the sooner we can begin building a comprehensive case for you. Contact us today to schedule your free consultation with an Orange County workers’ compensation attorney and learn how we can empower your recovery efforts.