Death And Dependency Claims Following Workplace Deaths
Perhaps your loved one died because of a disease contracted from toxic substances exposure at work. Or maybe a family member was tragically killed as the result of a horrific work-related accident. It is an incomprehensible tragedy any time a person dies before having the chance to live a full life. For surviving family members and loved ones, this tragedy is amplified when the cause of death was preventable. Unfortunately, many people are killed at work, leaving behind many real concerns to be dealt with by the survivors.
When An Accident Or A Job Hazard Caused Your Family Member’s Loss Of Life
The per capita number of Pennsylvania workers fatally injured on the job over the past decade has been declining – but this is little solace for those who have lost a loved one. Occupations with higher rates of fatal work injuries include highway construction and vehicle-related accidents; construction sites involving multiple contractors and heavy equipment such as cranes, backhoes and excavators, as well as working at heights and on scaffolding; factory workers exposed to fumes and complex machinery, and not to forget first responders including policemen and firefighters.
At times like these, you need legal advice on issues such as the proper calculation of death and dependency benefits, the representation of survivors in appeals or disputed claim hearings, or the negotiation of a lump sum settlement. Two major obstacles to receiving dependency and death benefits are (1) proving, in cases where the employee died sometime after the incident, that the death was causally related to the accident or occupational disease, and (2) proving that the employee died of this causally-related job injury or disease within 300 weeks of the accident or last exposure to a harmful substance at the workplace.
In addition, errors can be made in the calculations of funeral costs or total disability payments to compensate your family.
Our Attorneys Can Help After A Workplace Death
Individual situations that call for careful attention are sometimes missed when a family is grieving the loss of their loved one from a tragic work-related accident or illness. Legal counsel experienced in workplace fatalities can provide crucial guidance to the worker’s family and loved ones. These are the types of matters that the experienced workers’ compensation attorneys at the Pennsylvania firm of Schmidt, Kirifides & Rassias are skilled at handling. Many fatal work injury claims also have an element of negligence caused by a third party – whether it be a negligent driver, a careless subcontractor, or a defective machine or equipment. At Schmidt, Kirifides & Rassias, we handle all elements of these claims in one firm – which avoids the added stress of potentially conflicting advice, multiple, unnecessary rehashing of the details, and a lawyer seeking to maximize the fee on ‘their part’ of a claim – at the expense of a greater value in the whole case for the family. We ease your burden, and maximize your result. Our team of lawyers will work with qualified forensic evidence experts, medical professionals, accident reconstruction experts and economic loss specialists – to prove the scenario of a particularly complex accident that resulted in your loved one’s death and the lifetime of earnings your family needs.
Regardless of which county your loved one was fatally injured in, survivors will want to make certain that they have received all the workers’ compensation benefits to which they are entitled.
Contact Our Firm Today
Call Schmidt, Kirifides & Rassias at 610-601-5399 or contact us online for a free consultation with one of our certified workers’ compensation specialist lawyers about your situation following the loss of your loved one and your rights to death and dependency benefits through Pennsylvania workers’ compensation.