Legal Question in Workers Comp in Virginia

Employer Responsibility in a work related inury claim

I injured myself last week crawling under a house.This is a routine part of my job that every technician in my postion must do. The doctor thinks I might have tore something in my knee. The problem is the day after it happened I called in not to report to work.I was hoping it would get better so the next day it felt better and went to work.That day my supervisor asked how it felt and I advised him it wasnt feeling all that good but I would try to stick it out.The following day I called in and every day after now I have called in due to this injury.

1)Can I now file an injury claim or workers comp even though I didn't really report the incident as an injury at the time.The whole problem is it started hurting a day or so after it happened.

2)What does the law say about reporting an injury to your employer since there was no clear cut event that triggered it.Not like an accident so to speak.

3)What does the law say about how long you have to file a claim.


Asked on 10/25/05, 10:22 am

1 Answer from Attorneys
Gerald Lutkenhaus Virginia Workers Compensation & Disability Lawyer

Re: Employer Responsibility in a work related inury claim

Dear Sir:

If you do not want a dispute over your accident, it is best to report it the day it happened. Many companies have a report in 24 hours rule. By law you do have 30 days to report it. When you do report it you must report a "specific incident." Under Virginia Law lifting widgets all day long and having a bad back the next day is not an accident whereas lifting a 100 pound widget and injuring your back "at that time" is an accident. Your biggest problem from the facts is you say "it started hurting the next day." If you felt nothing when it was injured how do you know how you injured it. You have two (2) years to file a claim with the Virginia Workers Compensation Commission. Check www.virginiadisabilitylawyer.com for more information.

Gerald G. Lutkenhaus

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Answered on 10/25/05, 10:54 am


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