Missouri Workers Compensation Attorney
Roskin & Hoffmann, LLC
Missouri Workers Compensation Laws may allow an injured employee to recover compensation for prior workplace related injuries through the Second Injury Fund.
The second injury fund (SIF) was created in 1943 to benefit employees with a prior workplace related disability. The creation of the Second Injury Fund helped limit the liability of employers to that of the injury that took place while the employee was working for them. When an employee sustains a work related injury, and that injury taken in conjunction with all prior injuries leaves the employee unable to compete for work in the open labor market, the employer after 1943 was only liable for the last injury. The SIF is now responsible for the combination of all of the previous injuries and how those previous injuries interact with the current injury. This means payment for previous injuries even if the employee is able to return to work and payment for weekly checks if the employee is unable to return to work. This is often times a complication that claimants who proceed on their own never recover for.
Additionally, the Second Injury Fund will pay an injured employee if he or she has any lost wages from a second job where the employee was not injured but was nevertheless unable to work at during a particular period of time.
Death Benefits are also paid by the SIF. This is an additional amount of money, $25,000.00 for workers who are killed in the line of duty. This is limited to those employees who are normally thought of in the service capacity, policeman, fireman, ambulance personnel, etc. An amount of $5,000 can also be obtained for funeral expenses for those workers who have lost their life while working.
Rehabilitation Benefits are paid as well. For those employees who are seriously injured, and the injury needs rehabilitation, specifically those who are quadriplegic, paraplegic, amputees etc.
The Second Injury Fund will also pay for medical expenses when the injured worker’s employer did not have proper workers compensation insurance when they were required to by law. Typically a hearing is needed to receive payment for these expenses. Once the Second Injury Fund becomes aware of this, the employer is turned over to the Fraud and Non-compliance unit in order to investigate this breach of duty.
If any of these benefits apply to you, please do not pass up on your rights. Our workers compensation attorneys can help you obtain everything that you are owed. In most cases, a workers compensation case is very difficult to manage for someone who has no experience. With that said, knowing what case to bring against the SIF and how to proceed is typically the most overlooked by non-experts.
Who pays for the Second Injury Fund?
The Second Injury Fund is financed by a surcharge on all employers’ workers compensation premiums for insurance. This surcharge has been capped 3% meaning there is a limit to what the SIF can take in. As a result, there have been serious concerns about the Second Injury Fund’s ability to make payments on cases they have been ordered to do so.
Contact an Experienced Workers Compensation Lawyer
The St. Louis Workers Compensation Lawyers at Roskin & Hoffmann, LLC have extensive Work Comp experience and we have handled some of the most complex Workers Comp cases throughout Missouri. If you have been injured at work or have a questions regarding payment for lost wages, call our knowledgeable attorneys at (314) 821-9013 or send us a Workers Compensation question. We look forward to helping you. All communications are returned promptly.
Workers Compensation Lawyers at Roskin & Hoffmann, LLC based in St. Louis, Missouri have extensive work comp experience. Learn more about Second Injury Fund Claims.
