Amazon is one of the largest retailers on the planet and one of the United States’ biggest employers. In North Carolina, thousands of people work in various positions for Amazon, and many of these workers suffer injuries on the job in many ways. If you or a family member recently sustained any such injury, you need to consult a North Carolina Amazon work injury lawyer as quickly as possible to discuss your legal options.
The Sumwalt Group offers client-focused and responsive legal representation for workers’ compensation cases in Charlotte and surrounding areas of North Carolina. While the state has some of the most robust workers’ compensation laws in the country aimed at protecting injured workers, the unfortunate reality is that many injured workers encounter legal issues related to work injuries that they cannot resolve alone.
Our team has successfully helped many injured workers across all industries with their workers’ compensation claims and related legal efforts to recover. While Amazon is one of the largest employers in the United States, it has been the subject of many controversies concerning work conditions, demanding schedules, and respecting workers’ rights, and many of these discussions have originated with on-the-job injuries.
If you have been hurt while working at Amazon, it is vital to know your rights and what to expect when filing a workers’ compensation claim. This insurance can be an invaluable lifeline if you are unable to work during your recovery, but the actual process of filing your claim and securing your benefits could be more challenging than you initially expected. With our team’s help, you can feel more confident about the filing process.
North Carolina law requires almost every employer in the state to have workers’ compensation insurance, and this requirement extends to Amazon. However, Amazon works with many third parties to manage certain aspects of its operations, and not all of these workers are considered direct employees of Amazon. North Carolina employers are required to disclose insurance coverage status to their employers.
If you are a direct employee of Amazon and sustain an injury on the job, you are likely covered by their workers’ compensation insurance. Most workers’ compensation in North Carolina functions as a sole remedy; therefore, fault is usually not an issue in these cases. This means a worker could have caused their own injury and still qualify for workers’ compensation benefits, but there are exceptions to this.
If you caused your own injury because you intentionally violated workplace safety rules, refused to use specific safety equipment, or were working while impaired by drugs or alcohol, it is likely that you will be denied workers’ compensation benefits. When you are unsure whether your specific work injury qualifies for benefits, it is important to consult an experienced NC Amazon work injury lawyer as quickly as possible.
Workers’ compensation insurance serves two purposes. First, it provides an economic safety net to injured workers, providing them with benefits to help them recover from their injuries.
Second, it provides immunity from civil suits to the employer, meaning an injured worker usually cannot sue their employer in response to a workplace injury. However, if the employer intentionally caused the injury somehow, it could form grounds for a civil suit against the employer.
For example, if the employer compelled their employee to perform a task outside of their usual job duties that had virtual certainty to result in a serious injury, it would likely form grounds for a civil suit against the employer. An injured worker may also have grounds for legal recourse if their employer intentionally misclassified them as a contractor rather than an employee in an effort to avoid covering them with their workers’ compensation insurance policy.
The thousands of North Carolina residents working for Amazon fulfill many roles, from picking and packing orders at distribution centers to loading and unloading trucks and performing deliveries. It’s possible for an Amazon employee to suffer all types of injuries at work:
These are just a few examples of the harm an Amazon worker might experience on the job. After any injury at work, you should report the incident to your supervisor so there will be an incident report for your accident. Your employer is also required to provide the materials you need to file your claim for workers’ compensation benefits, and they may not interfere with the claim or retaliate against you for filing the claim.
Reporting your injury to your employer right away is important; they are required by law to create an incident report outlining the injury, and having proof that you reported your work injury right away will support your position later in a workers’ compensation benefits determination. If you delay reporting the injury, the insurance company may see this as an indication that your injury is not as severe as you claim.
Filing a workers’ compensation claim is similar to filing most other types of insurance claims, with a few notable exceptions. The worker should report their injury to their supervisor immediately and seek medical care. While they can see any available doctor in an emergency, a workers’ compensation insurance carrier will likely require them to see one of their approved physicians for a disability rating.
Your employer also plays a role in the insurance claim filing process. They are required to provide you with the materials you need to file your claim, and most North Carolina employers handle these situations in good faith. If your employer refuses to provide the necessary claim forms or retaliates against you, contact our Amazon work injury lawyers located in Charlotte right away and explain the situation. They can assist you in understanding your options for resolving this issue.
The workers’ compensation doctor you see will evaluate your condition and assign you a numerical value between 1 and 100 that indicates the overall severity of the injury. A higher rating means greater disability, and your disability rating will determine the level of benefits you can potentially recover from the insurance company. If you disagree with their assessment, a lawyer can help secure a second opinion.
After completing the preliminary steps of the filing process, you are ready to submit the claim to the insurance carrier. Remember that it is always prudent to start the filing process as quickly as possible after an injury occurs; state law requires an injured worker to report their injury to their employer within 30 days, and failure to meet this time limit could mean losing your chance to claim workers’ compensation benefits. You then have two years to file the claim.
Once you have submitted the claim to the insurance carrier, they will review it to determine your eligibility to receive benefits. If the claim is approved, you will receive a letter stating the amount of compensation it will provide and what types of benefits they have determined you are eligible to receive. If the claim is denied, you will need to work closely with your attorney to resolve this situation efficiently.
Workers’ compensation benefits can help the worker manage the cost of the medical care they need, provide ongoing disability benefits for the time they are unable to work while they recover, and provide a measure of job security so they can return to work once they have healed from their injury. If the claim is approved by your employer’s workers’ compensation insurance carrier, you can typically expect two forms of compensation.
First will be medical expense coverage. As long as your injury or illness was a direct result of you performing your job duties, the insurance company should pay for all of the medical treatment you need related to the injury. This will not only include immediate medical costs like hospital bills, surgery fees, and medical transportation but also ongoing expenses for things like physical therapy, prescription medications, and other rehabilitative care.
Second is disability benefits, and these will be paid according to your disability rating. Generally, workers’ compensation insurance companies issue disability benefits on a partial or total basis, depending on whether the claimant is able to work while they recover. If you can still work but can’t earn your usual income due to the injury, you should expect to receive partial disability benefits until you reach maximum medical improvement.
Partial disability benefits will help offset the loss of earning power following a work injury. You will need to report your weekly income to your employer’s insurance company to maintain eligibility for these benefits, and they will cease once you have recovered enough to return to work at your full earning capacity. Make sure you fully understand your reporting requirements for partial disability benefits so you are not disqualified for failing to meet them.
Total disability benefits are paid when an injury is severe enough that the worker is unable to perform any job duties at all until they recover. These payments can continue each week until the worker is able to return to work, and each payment will amount to about two-thirds of their average weekly pay during the year prior to their injury. It’s possible to eventually transition to partial disability benefits if you regain the capacity to handle light duty at work.
Note that your employer is not allowed to fire you while you are out on workers’ compensation unless they have a legitimate reason to do so. They may need to hire a temporary replacement to handle your job duties while you are out of work, but you should expect your position to be waiting for you upon your return. If you are fired while out on workers’ compensation, you need to consult an attorney to determine whether this was a wrongful termination.
Workers’ compensation insurance typically protects covered employers from liability for their injured workers’ damages, but a third party could have caused your injury while you were working at Amazon. If so, you not only have grounds to file a workers’ compensation claim, but you may also have the right to file a third-party personal injury suit against the at-fault party who caused your injury.
For example, if you were driving an Amazon delivery truck and a drunk driver hit your delivery vehicle and injured you, it would qualify as a work-related injury because you were performing your job duties when the accident happened. You could also pursue legal recourse against the drunk driver because they are a third party responsible for your injury. Success with this claim could yield compensation for damages that worker’s compensation insurance won’t cover.
Your successful workers’ compensation claim in Charlotte, or anywhere in North Carolina, may yield full coverage of your immediate and future medical expenses along with ongoing disability benefits for the time you are unable to work. A third-party personal injury suit could enable you to recover compensation for the remainder of your lost income as well as compensation for your pain and suffering, which workers’ compensation insurance typically does not offer.
Success with a personal injury claim in North Carolina will require clear proof of liability for the incident. Additionally, while fault is not typically an issue for a workers’ compensation claim it will be central to a personal injury suit. The plaintiff must prove the defendant is entirely at fault for their claimed damages; if the plaintiff bears any partial liability, they cannot seek compensation from the defendant under the contributory negligence rule.
Legal counsel you trust will be an invaluable asset for your workers’ compensation claim in Charlotte, or anywhere in North Carolina. Amazon is a massive company that does not have the greatest record of protecting employees’ rights, and many injured Amazon workers have encountered unfair treatment when they have been hurt on the job. When you have experienced legal counsel on your side, you can approach the filing process for your workers’ comp claim with peace of mind.
The Sumwalt Group aims to provide client-focused legal counsel to every injured worker we represent. Our goal is to help you navigate the filing process swiftly, resolve any disputes raised against your claim, and assist you in maximizing your benefits after any injury at work. We can listen to the details of your situation and help you determine the optimal path to recovery.
While it is technically possible to file a workers’ compensation claim without hiring legal counsel, it is not always an option, as an injured worker may encounter situations that they will not know how to resolve on their own. They could also unintentionally settle for far less compensation than they deserve or unknowingly overlook key avenues of recovery available to them.
A North Carolina Amazon work injury lawyer can make you feel more confident as you confront this massive employer and their insurance carrier to secure the benefits you need and deserve after any type of work-related injury. Our firm excels at resolving complex cases and can provide responsive communication, close attention to detail, and ongoing support through all stages of your workers’ compensation case.
Time is a crucial factor for your case; you must report the injury to your supervisor immediately and start building your workers’ compensation claim as quickly as possible to ensure the greatest chances of success with your recovery efforts. Contact The Sumwalt Group Workers’ Comp and Trial Lawyers today in Charlotte, NC, and schedule your free consultation with an Amazon work injury lawyer to learn how we can assist you with your recovery.