Understanding The Difference Between Workers’ Compensation And Personal Injury Claims

After suffering injuries in an accident in Illinois, you may be entitled to file a workers’ compensation claim or a personal injury claim. Depending on the circumstances, you may even be eligible to file a personal injury and workers’ compensation claim. If your workplace injury is the fault of a third party who is not your employer, you may have a workers’ compensation claim and a personal injury claim.

It can be hard to understand the difference between a workers’ compensation claim and a personal injury claim. This article discusses some of the differences between workers’ compensation and personal injury claims.

Limitations

Workers’ compensation claims are restricted to employees of a company. On the other hand, anyone can file a personal injury claim as long as they can prove that another party’s negligence caused their injury. It is possible to have both a workers’ compensation and personal injury claim arising out of the same accident if the cause was some party other than your employer.

Fault

One of the major differences between workers’ compensation and personal injury claims is that personal injury claims require fault, whereas workers’ compensation claims do not. You must prove negligence to recover compensation after filing a personal injury claim. To obtain compensation after filing a personal injury claim, you must prove the following;

1. You were owed a duty of care
2. The other party breached that duty
3. The other party’s actions injured you

On the other hand, in a workers’ compensation case, you are not required to prove negligence on the part of your employer or co-worker. Workers’ compensation is a no-fault system. You only need to prove your injury is work-related to recover workers’ compensation benefits.

Additionally, in an Illinois personal injury case, you will be barred from recovering compensation if you are equally to blame or more at fault for your injury. On the other hand, in an Illinois workers’ compensation case, even if your negligence caused your injury, you are still entitled to recover benefits.

Pain and Suffering Damages

Another big difference between a workers’ compensation claim and a personal injury claim is that you are entitled to recover pain and suffering damages in a personal injury claim, but you are not entitled to recover these damages in a workers’ compensation claim.

In an Illinois worker’s compensation claim, you may recover the following damages;

• Temporary disability benefits
• Permanent total disability benefits
• Permanent partial disability benefits
• Wage differential benefits
• Disfigurement benefits
• Vocational rehabilitation
• Medical benefits

In an Illinois personal injury claim, you may recover pain and suffering damages in addition to the following damages;

• Medical expenses
• Lost wages
• Loss of enjoyment of life
• Property damages
• And more

Statutes of Limitations

In Illinois, you generally have three years after the date you suffer a workplace injury to file a claim for benefits. On the other hand, you generally have two years after suffering an injury to file a personal injury claim.

Contact Connolly Injury Law

Whether you want to file a workers’ compensation or personal injury claim in Illinois, the Chicago workers’ compensation lawyers at Connolly Injury Law can help. Call us at (312)780-0816, or reach us by filling out our online contact form.