WorkCover claims
Maddens Lawyers have been helping injured workers for many years, and takes great pride in making the process as simple as possible for clients.
If you've been injured at work, or suffered an illness or disease as part of your employment, you can claim compensation.
The most important things to do first are:
- lodge a workers compensation claim with your employer as soon as possible, using the correct forms, and within strict timelines
- seek independent legal advice - don't make your own assessment of how serious your injury or illness might be.
Maddens can help you through this process to ensure you follow the right procedures and gain the maximum compensation you are entitled to.
Compensation for people injured at work is provided via WorkSafe (formerly WorkCover). WorkSafe provides assistance for injured workers, whether they are full time, part time, casual, contractors, or self-employed. Injuries that may be covered are physical and psychological diseases or illnesses.
WorkSafe may also apply if your employment has made an existing injury or illness worse, or caused an old injury or illness to return such as:
- cancer
- stroke
- asthma
- heart conditions
- degenerative conditions.
You may even be able to claim for injuries that occurred:
- on a lunch/tea break
- at a work function
- at a work training session or event
- while travelling during the course of work.
Provided you can show some relationship between your employment and the injury, you may be entitled to compensation.
WorkSafe can also provide compensation for the dependents of a worker who was killed at work or died as a result of their employment.
Navigating the requirements of a WorkSafe claim can be complicated and lengthy. It also involves strict time limits. That's why it's important to seek expert legal advice if you think that you - or a member of your family - may qualify for compensation.
Frequently asked questions
There are several types of treatments that can help you and your family get through the difficult times that usually follow negligent medical advice or treatment. You could receive compensation for:
There are several types of benefits that can help you and your family get through the difficult times that usually follow a work-related injury or accident:
- Medical treatment
- Rehabilitation treatment
- Travel to and from treatment
- Home help assistance
- Income support if you cannot work
- One payment to cover permanent injuries
An experienced lawyer is necessary if you are to investigate these types of benefits. There are a lot of guidelines and requirements that must be met or followed to ensure you are eligible.
That will always depend on your circumstances. There are maximum amounts payable, depending on the injury and the pain and suffering it caused. We will discuss your personal situation with you, and provide advice on what you may be entitled to. We pride ourselves on securing compensation that fairly and adequately covers a clients’ medical costs and pain and suffering.
We understand that people with average incomes may not be able to afford to meet the costs of starting legal action while they wait for a compensation payout, in particular, if they have been unable to work due to an illness or injury. This is why we have a ‘no result – no charge’ policy, which means if we believe we can win a personal injury claim on your behalf, we will consider holding off charging you for our tie until there is a settlement or decision on your case. Consider it an example of us putting our money where our mouth is.
There are conditions to this policy. For example, it doesn’t apply to out-of-pocket expenses such as the cost to get reports from medical experts or court fees. This will be explained to you at your first appointment, which is also free.
Before we start any work, we will explain to you in detail:
- how fees are calculated
- costs to put your case together
- costs that may come up during your case
- what you may recover, or need to pay, to others involved in your case.
You don’t need to be able to identify whose fault it was that you were injured. Provided you were injured, or contracted an illness as a result of your employment, you have a reason to investigate whether you are eligible for compensation.
No. There are laws that prevent this – not to mention our own moral code. Our aim is to ensure you receive all that you are entitled to. That’s not to say that you won’t need to cover some additional legal costs. But we will keep you updated as the case goes on. In many successful cases, a portion of your legal costs may be recovered from the other party.
While we can’t give you a guarantee that you won’t be ordered to pay the other party’s costs, this doesn’t happen very often. We pay close attention to how the case is progressing so that we can assess if you may be at risk of having to pay the other party’s costs. Your best first step is to seek independent legal advice. We can provide you with a fair and accurate assessment of your situation, so you know where you stand.