When you’ve been injured on the job, you are likely frustrated and stressed about your financial situation. Things could be even more upsetting if you find out that you’ve been permanently disabled because of your accident.
If you’ve been permanently disabled by a work injury, you may want to consider your options with regards to workers compensation payments. The weekly benefits don’t last forever, so you may want to learn how to calculate a workers comp settlement in New York. This may help determine whether a settlement is a better option for you.
How Your Work Comp Settlement Is Calculated in New York
Workers compensation normally provides weekly benefits to pay your work-related medical expenses and missed wages. Typically, these benefits will be paid every two weeks until your injury has fully healed and you can return to work.
Sometimes, injured workers suffer from very serious injuries that keep them from returning to work or limit the use of the injured body part. You can seek a lump sum settlement called a Section 32 agreement, which may be a better option for you than the weekly benefit payments, for which certain time limits apply.
You must be careful, though, because Section 32 agreements cannot be renegotiated once they’ve been approved. Here’s what to include in your calculations for a Section 32 agreement:
- Your missed wages for up to ten years
- Your future medical costs
- The extent of your injury and whether you will suffer partial permanent disability
If you do decide to take a settlement, you must budget carefully to provide financially for your future.
Schedule Loss of Use Award
Another option that allows you to obtain compensation for a more serious injury is seeking a Schedule Loss of Use Award. This award is an additional cash payment reimbursing you for a permanent disability in which the injured part of your body will never be what it was before the injury.
With this award, you are compensated based on which body part was injured and the percentage of loss of use.
A Workers Comp Lawyer Can Maximize the Value of Your Settlement
Knowing how to calculate a workers comp settlement in New York is useful, but it’s still important that you discuss your case with an attorney. A Section 32 agreement cannot be reversed once it has been approved. That means that, even if your injury gets worse, you won’t get another opportunity to recover compensation for your injury.
We offer free case reviews to discuss the details of your case and help you determine which path you would like to pursue. Call a workers compensation lawyer with Finkelstein, Meirowitz & Eidlisz, LLP at 212-385-9190 or fill out the contact form below.