Cameras are literally just about everywhere these days, thanks to smartphones. They’re also heavily used these days in workers’ compensation claims, particularly when employers don’t really want to pay up.
How could a “candid camera” moment hurt your workers’ compensation claim? Consider these examples:
- You’re injured at work in a fall because someone left a spilled liquid on the ground and didn’t warn you. However, your employer says that the security cameras seem to indicate that you were “horsing around” with another employee just moments before you fell. They say that your actions disqualify you from compensation.
- You fell in the parking lot on your way to take out the refuse for the day — but you were just off camera when it happened. Because you initially tried to walk off your injuries, your employer says that the camera indicates that you weren’t injured when you say you were injured. They deny the claim for not being work-related.
- You were clearly in an accident at work, but your employer or their insurance company suspects that your back injury isn’t hurt as seriously as you claim. They send an investigator to spy on you and you’re caught on video by a private investigator lifting what looks like heavy boxes. They were empty, but that’s not what it seems like on camera.
Insurance companies and employers will sometimes go out of their way to deny a perfectly valid workers’ compensation claim — and video evidence can help them do it. You need to be cautious about everything you say or do when you have a claim pending.
If your workers’ comp claim is unfairly denied, don’t give up. An experienced attorney may be able to help.
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