The Complex World of Workers’ Comp

Yesterday, the Virginian Pilot’s Philip Walzer ran an interesting article about the Virginia Workers’ Compensation system entitled “Welcome to the Complex World of Workers’ Comp.” The article features a young man named Justin Hockman who dislocated his kneecap when he fell 7 1/2 feet onto a concrete floor, trying to haul a dishwasher at the Chesapeake Best Buy where he worked. In addition to his dislocated knee, he suffered a sprained neck, ruptured eardrum, broken shoulder, elbow and wrist in addition to a serious brain injury. All in a day’s work…..

Like so many other workers before and after him, Philip Walzer went to work just like any other day, only to have his life turned upside down by a work related accident. After his accident he got a first hand look at the depths of corporate power finding himself looking only to “get my life back” , with the power of the Best Buy Insurance legal team doing everything they can to minimize their liability. Throughout the process and the road to recovery, Philip came across many roadblocks, mainly the insurance carrier for his former employer who again and again refused the surgeries and physical therapy necessary to get his life back to normal. “Delay, delay, delay: that’s what the insurance companies live and die for.”

The article does a great job pointing out the flaws in the Virginia Worker’s compensation system, and the restrictive nature of what juries are actually covered. In Virginia injuries are only covered if they were caused by an “identifiable incident or sudden precipitating event”. One thing is very clear, it is incredibly difficult to get a fair treatment from a Workers’ Comp insurance carrier without the assistance of an experienced Workers’ Compensation attorney.

While many people know Rutter Mills for their acumen in Auto Accident cases, not everyone knows that we have been winning Workers Comp cases for over 50 years. As the article mentions, the Virginia Workers Comp system can be sluggish and complicated, and it often takes an experienced Workers’ Compensation attorney to navigate the difficult system and get you the compensation you deserve. If you or a loved one have been injured in a workers’ compensation accident, don’t delay contact the experienced Workers’ Compensation team at Rutter Mills today.

The aforementioned article ran in the Virginian Pilot’s new tablet magazine – “Evening Pilot”. here is the link to download the app and read the full article.