If you've been injured or become ill at work, you may need to file for workers' compensation. Workers' compensation pays for medical care, rehabiliation, and some wage replacement if you have to miss work. To get these benefits, you must file a claim and follow your state's procedures carefully.
Filing a Claim
Get immediate medical care if your injury requires it. You must then inform your employer of your injury as soon as possible. This is a tricky part of processing a workers’ comp claim, since states have wildly different limits on the number of days you have to notify your employer; in most states, the limit is one month, but the range is from a few days to two years.
In the unlikely event that your employer refuses to cooperate with you in filing a workers’ compensation claim, a call to your local workers’ compensation office will usually remedy the situation.
Typically, your employer will have claim forms for you to fill out and submit or can obtain a form quickly. It then becomes your employer’s responsibility to submit the paperwork to the proper insurance carrier. Depending on state law, you—rather than your employer—may need to file a separate claim with your state’s workers’ compensation agency. There is a time limit on this, too—often a year after injury. But your state may have a shorter limit.
If your claim is not disputed by your employer or its insurance carrier, it will be approved and an adjuster for the insurance company will typically contact you or your employer with instructions on how to submit your medical bills for payment. But be prepared; things do not always go smoothly. The employer, in an attempt to keep workers’ comp rates from skyrocketing, may fight your right to benefits. The best way you can counteract such disputes is by producing good documentation, including complete medical records, of your injury and treatment.
If your injury is not permanent and does not cause you to lose income, getting payment for your medical bills will probably be the extent of your claim; there won't be much else for you to do. If you are temporarily unable to work because of your injury, you will also begin receiving checks to cover your wage loss—typically within a week or two after your claim is approved. Your employer will notify the insurance company to stop sending you wage-replacement checks as soon as you recover and return to work.
Finding Your State Workers' Compensation Office
The listings below will enable you to contact the agency handling workers’ compensation claims in your state. Many states also operate dedicated hotlines and websites. While they vary in comprehensiveness, they should provide the basic information you’ll need to decide whether and how to pursue a claim.
Alabama
Workers’ Compensation Division
Department of Industrial Relations
Industrial Relations Building
649 Monroe Street
Montgomery, AL 36131
334-242-2868
800-528-5166
FAX: 334-353-8262
Alaska
Department of Labor Division of Workers’ Compensation
P.O. Box 115512
Juneau, AK 99811
907-465-2790
FAX: 907-465-2797
http://labor.state.ak.us/wc/home.htm
Arizona
State Compensation Fund
3030 N. 3rd Street
Phoenix, AZ 85012
602-631-2300
800-231-1363
FAX: 602-631-2213
Arkansas
Workers’ Compensation Commission
324 Spring Street
P.O. Box 950
Little Rock, AR 72203
501-682-3930
800-622-4472
TDD: 800-285-1131
California
Department of Industrial Relations
Division of Workers’ Compensation
1515 Clay Street, 17th Floor
Oakland, CA 94612
510-286-7100
800-736-7401
Colorado
Department of Labor and Employment
Division of Workers’ Compensation
633 17th Street, Suite 400
Denver, CO 80202
303-318-8700
888-390-7936
FAX: 303-318-8710
Connecticut
Workers’ Compensation Commission
21 Oak Street
Hartford, CT 06106
860-493-1500
FAX: 860-247-1361
http://wcc.state.ct.us/index.html
Delaware
Office of Workers’ Compensation
4425 N. Market Street
3rd Floor
Wilmington, DE 19802
302-761-8200
FAX: 302-761-6601
http://dia.delawareworks.com/workers-comp/
District of Columbia
Office of Workers’ Compensation
64 New York Avenue, NE
2nd Floor
Washington, DC 20002
202-671-1000
http://does.dc.gov/does/cwp/view,a,1232,q,537428.asp
Florida
Division of Workers’ Compensation
200 E. Gaines Street
Tallahassee, FL 32399
850-413-1600
800-742-2214
FAX: 850-488-2305
Georgia
State Board of Workers’ Compensation
270 Peachtree Street, NW
Atlanta, GA 30303
404-656-3875
Department of Labor & Industrial Relations
Disability Compensation Division
830 Punchbowl Street, Room 209
P.O. Box 3769
Honolulu, HI 96813
808-586-9161
FAX: 808-586-9099
Idaho
Industrial Commission
317 Main Street
P.O. Box 83720
Boise, ID 83720
208-334-6000
FAX: 208-334-2321
Illinois
Workers’ Compensation Commission
100 W. Randolph Street
Suite 8-200
Chicago, IL 60601
312-814-6611
866-352-3033
Indiana
Workers’ Compensation Board
402 W. Washington Street, Room W-196
Indianapolis, IN 46204
317-232-3809
800-824-2667
Iowa
Division of Workers’ Compensation
1000 E. Grand Avenue
Des Moines, IA 50319
515-281-5387
800-562-4692
Kansas
Division of Workers’ Compensation
800 SW Jackson Street
Topeka, KS 66612
785-296-2996
800-332-0353
http://dia.delawareworks.com/workers-comp/
Kentucky
Office of Workers’ Claims
657 Chamberlin Avenue
Frankfort, KY 40601
502-564-5550, ext. 4423
www.labor.ky.gov/workersclaims
Louisiana
Office of Workers’ Compensation Administration
1001 N. 23rd Street
P.O. Box 94040
Baton Rouge, LA 70804
225-342-7555
FAX: 225-342-5665
www.laworks.net/WorkersComp/OWC_MainMenu.asp
Maine
Workers’ Compensation Board
27 State House Station
Augusta, ME 04333
207-287-3751
888-801-9087
TTY: 207-287-6119
FAX: 207-207-7198
Maryland
Workers’ Compensation Insurance
8722 Loch Raven Boulevard
Towson, MD 21286
410-494-2000
800-264-4943
Massachusetts
Workers’ Compensation Advisory Council
600 Washington Street
Boston, MA 02111
617-727-4900, ext. 378
FAX: 617-727-7122
Michigan
Workers’ Compensation Agency
7150 Harris Drive
1st Floor, B Wing
Dimondale, MI 48821
517-322-1106
888-396-5041
Department of Labor & Industry
Workers’ Compensation Division
443 Lafayette Road N
St. Paul, MN 55155
651-284-5005
800-342-5354
TTY: 651-297-4198
Mississippi
Workers’ Compensation Commission
1428 Lakeland Drive
Jackson, MS 39216
601-987-4247
866-473-6922
Missouri
Division of Workers’ Compensation
3315 W. Truman Boulevard
Room 131
P.O. Box 58
Jefferson City, MO 65102
573-751-4231
800-775-2667
Montana
Workers’ Compensation Court
1625 11th Avenue
Helena, MT 59624
406-444-7794
FAX: 406-444-7798
http://wcc.dli.mt.gov/whoweare.asp
Nebraska
Workers’ Compensation Court
Capitol Building
P.O. Box 98908
Lincoln, NE 68509
402-471-6468
800-599-5155
Nevada
Division of Industrial Relations
400 W. King Street
Suite 400
Carson City, NV 89703
775-684-7260
FAX: 775-687-6305
New Hampshire
Workers’ Compensation Division
95 Pleasant Street
Concord, NH 03301
603-271-3176
800-272-4353
www.labor.state.nh.us/workers_compensation.asp
New Jersey
Division of Workers’ Compensation
P.O. Box 381
Trenton, NJ 08625
609-292-2414
FAX: 609-984-2515
http://lwd.dol.state.nj.us/labor/wc/wc_index.html
New Mexico
Workers’ Compensation Administration
2410 Centre Avenue, SE
P.O. Box 27198
Albuquerque, NM 87125
505-841-6000
800-255-7965
http://www.workerscomp.state.nm.us/
New York
Workers’ Compensation Board
20 Park Street
Albany, NY 12207
866-750-5157
877-632-4996
FAX: 518-473-9166
North Carolina
Industrial Commission
4340 Mail Service Center
Raleigh, NC 27699
919-807-2501
FAX: 919-715-0280
North Dakota
Workforce Safety & Insurance
1600 E. Century Avenue
Suite 1
Bismarck, ND 58503
701-328-3800
800-777-5033
TDD: 701-328-3786
Bureau of Workers’ Compensation
30 W. Spring Street
Columbus, OH 43215
800-644-6292
FAX: 800-520-6446
Oklahoma
Workers’ Compensation Court
1915 N. Stiles Avenue
Oklahoma City, OK 73105
405-522-8600
800-522-8210
Oregon
Workers’ Compensation Division
350 Winter Street, NE
P.O. Box 14480
Salem, OR 97309
503-947-7810
800-452-0288
TTY: 503-947-7993
www.cbs.state.or.us/external/wcd/index.html
Pennsylvania
Bureau of Workers’ Compensation
Department of Labor & Industry
1171 S. Cameron Street
Room 324
Harrisburg, PA 17104
717-772-4447
800-482-2383
TTY: 800-362-4228
Rhode Island
Division of Workers’ Compensation
1511 Pontiac Avenue
Building 71-1, 1st Floor
P.O. Box 20190
Cranston, RI 02920
401-462-8100
TDD: 401-462-8006
South Carolina
Workers’ Compensation Commission
1333 Main Street, Suite 500
P.O. Box 1715
Columbia, SC 29201
803-737-5700
FAX: 803-737-5768
South Dakota
Division of Labor and Management
Department of Labor
Kneip Building
700 Governors Drive
Pierre, SD 57501
605-773-3681
FAX: 605-773-4211
http://dlr.sd.gov/workerscomp/
Tennessee
Workers’ Compensation Division
220 French Landing Drive
Nashville, TN 37243
800-332-2667
615-532-4812
FAX: 615-532-1468
www.tn.gov/labor-wfd/wcomp.html
Texas
Division of Workers’ Compensation
7551 Metro Center Drive
Suite 100
Austin, TX 78744
512-804-4000
FAX: 512-804-4401
www.tdi.state.tx.us/wc/index.html
Utah
Industrial Accidents Division
160 E. 300 S, 3rd Floor
Salt Lake City, UT 84114
801-530-6800
800-530-5090
FAX: 801-530-6390
http://laborcommission.utah.gov
Workers’ Compensation Division
Department of Labor
5 Green Mountain Drive
P.O. Box 488
Montpelier, VT 05601
802-828-2286
FAX: 802-828-2195
www.labor.vermont.gov/Business/WorkersCompensation/tabid/
114/Default.aspx
Virginia
Workers’ Compensation Commission
1000 DMV Drive
Richmond, VA 23220
877-664-2566
FAX: 804-367-9740
Washington
Department of Labor and Industries
P.O. Box 44000
Olympia, WA 98504
360-902-5800
TDD: 360-902-5797
FAX: 360-902-5798
www.lni.wa.gov/ClaimsIns/Claims/default.asp
West Virginia
Workers’ Compensation
P.O. Box 50540
Charleston, WV 25305
304-558-3386
888-879-9842
http://www.wvinsurance.gov/WorkersCompensation.aspx
Wisconsin
Workers’ Compensation Division
201 E. Washington Avenue
Room C100
Madison, WI 53703
608-266-1340
FAX: 608-267-0394
Wyoming
Workers’ Safety & Compensation Division
1510 E. Pershing Boulevard
Cheyenne, WY 82002
307-777-7441
FAX: 307-777-6552
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