Workers’ compensation insurance is one of the necessary expenses you have to pay as a business owner. You carry coverage in case one of your workers gets hurt on the job. That insurance will pay for their medical treatments as well as their lost wages if they require time off while they recover.
Some employers will self-insure instead of paying for an outside policy. This practice is perfectly legal in Ohio if you have enough resources, but it can lead to big expenses when someone files a claim. As a self-insured employer, how can you be sure a workers’ compensation claim is legitimate?
Request a medical evaluation
Proper medical analysis is key to a successful workers’ compensation insurance defense. An in-depth evaluation by a qualified medical professional may determine that the symptoms are not as severe as the worker claims in some cases. You may be able to prove that they misrepresented or exaggerated their symptoms to get benefits or time off work.
Other times, the physician may be able to conclusively show that the injury was not a result of someone’s employment but sport activity outside of work or another, non-work-related cause.
Work with employees who have legitimate injuries
You can’t legally deny benefits to an employee who was injured on the job, but you can reduce how much you have to pay. Cooperating with them by offering accommodations so that they can stay at work despite their injury can help you avoid disability payments in addition to medical payments. Looking carefully at a workers’ compensation claim can help you as a self-insured employer.
