Workers’ Comp and Third-Party Claims in Massachusetts
Quick Answer: Workers’ Comp and Third-Party Claims in Massachusetts
- An injured worker in Massachusetts may generally receive workers’ compensation benefits for a job-related injury without proving that the employer was negligent.
- If a person or company outside the protected employer-employee relationship is legally responsible for the accident, the worker may also have a separate third-party personal injury claim.
- A third-party claim may provide additional compensation for losses that workers’ compensation does not fully cover, including pain and suffering, full lost income, emotional distress, and other damages.
- The workers’ compensation insurance carrier may have a lien on a third-party settlement, making it important to coordinate the two claims carefully.
What Is a Workers’ Comp Third-Party Claim in Massachusetts?
Workers’ compensation and a third-party personal injury claim are two different ways an injured worker may recover compensation after a workplace accident.
Massachusetts workers’ compensation generally provides benefits without requiring the injured employee to prove that the employer was negligent. Those benefits may include medical care and partial wage replacement.
A third-party personal injury claim can be especially important after a serious workplace injury because it may provide compensation for losses that workers’ compensation does not fully cover.
Massachusetts General Laws c. 152, §15 expressly allows an injured employee to receive workers’ compensation benefits while also pursuing damages against a legally responsible third party.
A third-party personal injury claim can be especially important after a serious injury because workers’ compensation does not provide the same damages available in a negligence case.
Common Workers’ Comp Third-Party Claims in Massachusetts
A third-party claim may arise when a person or company outside the protected employer-employee relationship causes or contributes to a workplace accident. Common examples include:
- Work-related car accidents. A delivery driver, salesperson, construction worker, or other employee may be injured by an at-fault driver while performing job duties. The worker may have a workers’ compensation claim and a separate personal injury claim against the negligent driver.
- Construction accidents. A serious construction injury may involve the negligence of a general contractor, subcontractor, property owner, equipment company, or another business at the job site.
- Unsafe property conditions. A worker injured while performing work on property controlled by another company may have a claim against a property owner, management company, maintenance contractor, or another party responsible for the dangerous condition.
- Defective equipment or machinery. A manufacturer, distributor, maintenance company, or other business may be responsible when defective machinery, tools, vehicles, or equipment cause a work-related injury.
What Additional Compensation Can a Third-Party Claim Provide?
Workers’ compensation benefits are limited. A separate third-party personal injury claim may allow an injured worker to recover damages that are not fully available through the workers’ compensation system.
Depending on the case, compensation may include:
- medical expenses and future medical care;
- lost income and reduced earning capacity;
- pain and suffering;
- emotional distress;
- permanent impairment or disability; and
- other economic and non-economic damages caused by the injury.
Unlike workers’ compensation, a third-party personal injury claim requires proof that the third party was legally responsible for the accident and that the negligence caused the worker’s injuries.
How Long Do You Have to File a Third-Party Claim in Massachusetts?
A third-party personal injury claim has its own statute of limitations separate from the workers’ compensation case.
Massachusetts generally requires tort actions for personal injuries to be filed within three years after the cause of action accrues, although exceptions and different deadlines can apply depending on the circumstances. M.G.L. c. 260, §2A.
An injured worker should not assume that receiving workers’ compensation benefits or keeping a workers’ compensation case open extends the deadline for filing a separate third-party personal injury lawsuit.
What Happens to the Workers’ Compensation Lien?
When workers’ compensation benefits have been paid and the injured worker later recovers compensation from a negligent third party, the workers’ compensation insurer may have a right to reimbursement from the third-party recovery under M.G.L. c. 152, §15.
Section 15 also addresses attorney fees and litigation expenses, the employee’s excess recovery, and how a third-party recovery can affect future workers’ compensation benefits. The Massachusetts Department of Industrial Accidents also requires approval of many third-party settlements under the procedures established by §15.
For that reason, the workers’ compensation claim, third-party settlement, workers’ compensation lien, and potential future benefits should be evaluated together.
Injured at Work Because of Someone Else’s Negligence?
If you were injured in a workplace accident, construction accident, work-related car crash, or another job injury caused by someone outside your employer, Gavagan Law can evaluate whether you may have a third-party personal injury claim in addition to workers’ compensation benefits.
Gavagan Law identifies potentially responsible parties and available insurance coverage, evaluates the full medical, financial, and personal impact of serious injuries, and develops the third-party claim to pursue the compensation available from the negligent party.
Contact Gavagan Law for a free consultation to discuss your legal options after a Massachusetts workplace injury.
