WHAT IS WORKERS’ COMPENSATION AND HOW DOES IT WORK IN NC?

Workers’ Compensation is a state law that requires employers to purchase private insurance to protect their employees.

It is designed to pay for injured workers.

It is not a state run program. It is not funded by the taxpayers.

The law requires that the insurance company for a compensable workers’ compensation claim pay for three things:

1. Medical treatment;
2. Payment for time out of work;
3. Payment for a permanent injury.

N.C. law specifically excludes any coverage for pain and suffering or anguish in a workers’ compensation c.

If you have been injured on the job, three things must occur before the insurance will pay:

1. You must report the injury to your employer;
2. Your employer must report the injury to their insurance company;
3. Your employer or the insurance company should direct you for medical treatment, but if there is any delay, please seek medical treatment on your own immediately.

It’s important to know that in North Carolina, getting hurt on the job in and of itself is not enough to have a compensable claim. The injured worker has the obligation to prove if they have a compensable injury in one of three theories:

1. An injury by accident;
2. A specific traumatic incident to the back;
3. An occupational disease.