No matter where you work, there is unfortunately always a risk of being injured. Even in an office, a slip on the stairs could have you in hospital for weeks.
If you have suffered a serious injury recently, you might be wondering what you should do. It can be hard to process everything or even think logically when you are hurt.
Here is some information on what you need to do right now if you have just suffered a serious injury.
Get a lawyer
The first thing you are going to want to do after you’ve suffered a serious injury is to get a lawyer. No matter what happened you will want to seek legal advice. If you hurt yourself at work there will probably be compensation due to you, to cover hospital bills and also putting you out of work. As mentioned by Kendall Law Firm, many lawyers are used to working on personal injury cases and will know what is best.
Even if it was not at work, you could qualify for a payout from somewhere depending on what happened. By getting in touch with a lawyer they will be able to tell you where you stand on a legal basis. Don’t wait around, if you have hurt yourself badly, you should get in touch with a lawyer immediately.
Gather evidence
Although you might not be able to do much in the immediate moments after a serious accident, you should be thinking about collecting evidence. Whether that is going over the events right up until the accident in your head, or taking pictures of your surroundings, all will be useful later.
It is important to establish a solid foundation of evidence for what happened that led to you being injured. If this was at work, make sure that you get any colleagues who were witnesses to write up an account of what happened immediately.
It is important to get these before any big bosses try to persuade them to not say anything. Lawsuits and injuries are messy, but you have a right to claim damages, especially if you are seriously hurt. Gathering as much evidence as possible is important when you have had a serious injury.
Get medical help
Naturally, this is probably the first thing that will be on most people’s minds if they have been seriously hurt. However, it is important to stress just how crucial this is to your legal standing.
Aside from making sure that you are okay, having a medical assessment right after your injury will be important to your lawsuit case. The reason for this is that the judge will need to see exactly what your injuries were as close to the accident as possible. If you waited a week, it would be hard to prove exactly what was caused by the accident and what could have happened to you in the days between.
Having a detailed medical record of the injuries you sustained from your accident will be the foundation of any legal case you bring against your employer. This report will also determine how much compensation you are due as it will be a measure of the severity of the injuries. Getting medical help as soon after your accident as possible is vital if you have suffered a serious injury.
Know your rights
The last thing that you need to do now if you have just had a serious injury is to understand your rights. As an employee, you will most likely be covered by some insurance that is written into your contract. This will probably explain what the employer is liable for in the event of an accident or injury.
Employers can try and be a bit sneaky, especially when they can see that they might have to give out a large amount of compensation. They may try and talk to you and coerce you into not suing for personal injury damages.
It is really important to remember that you have a right to sue them if you have been injured and that you should not feel pressured or guilty for wanting to pursue compensation. To make sure that you get compensated properly and explain your rights you can check these top attorneys in Georgia if you are in the area to assist you further and get you the help that you need.
Serious injuries, serious business
Nobody wants to think about what might happen if they were to get seriously injured at work. It is, however, important to know what you should do if the worst were to happen.
Hopefully, you have learned the main points of what you should do if you have a serious injury and hopefully has made you feel a little clearer about the process of filing a lawsuit.
Tommy Williamson did his degree in psychology at the University of Hertfordshire. He is interested in mental health, wellness, and lifestyle.
