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What to Do If Your Workers Compensation Claim Is Denied

admin — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 01:02:11 +0000

Workers compensation is something people seldom need. In fact, most workers won’t ever suffer a job related injury, and need to file a claim. However, when it happens, then it’s usually a serious issue. An accident occurs and you risk being without salary for a while, plus medical bills, so you always want your claim to be processed quickly. But not all claims are honored. What do you do if your workers’ compensation claim is denied?

The first thing to do is to look at the denial paper. Typically when you get the result, a report will be sent to you that explains how the review process went, and the reasons for rejection. In some cases, it may be a simple error, like you didn’t fill in the form properly, or didn’t include all the documents that were requested. In these cases, it may be possible to correct the issue quickly, and resubmit the paperwork. If not, then the next step to think about is an appeal. You can always appeal your rejection, and they will need to review the claim again. It may be that whoever reviewed your claim didn’t read everything correctly and made a mistake. Perhaps you actually weren’t covered, in which case they will deny it again. But sometimes, valid claims are denied simply because the employer doesn’t want to pay.

If your appeal doesn’t work, and you’re sure that you should be covered for what happened, then you may need to get a workers’ compensation attorney. These professionals specialize in cases of workers’ compensation, and a good attorney will know what to do, and whether the company should be sued. This can result in fairly lengthy proceedings, so you need to make sure you get an attorney as soon as the claim is denied. There are deadlines for both appeals and legal proceedings, and you need to be aware of them. An attorney isn’t free, but they will often review your case for free. Then, you can go in front of a workers’ compensation judge, and get your hearing, where he or she will decide who is right. This can cost you, but fortunately it’s a fairly streamlined system, unlike more traditional courts, where costs can quickly become astronomical. In most cases here you won’t have to pay all that much.

The important thing when you find out you were denied is to not panic, and read everything carefully. You have rights, such as the appeal and the hearing, as long as you follow the rules, make valid claims, and follow the limit dates. It’s worth going as far as you can if you think your employer isn’t being reasonable, because the financial aid from workers’ compensation can be quite high, and a lot of money may be in play.

Reasons Why You Should Take Out Boiler Insurance This Winter

admin — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 00:32:21 +0000

It goes without saying that winter is the time of the year when domestic boilers come under the most pressure, often leading to a breakdown. As we enter the coldest time of the year, it may be wise to take out a Boiler insurance policy that covers either your boiler and its functions, or your entire central heating system. In the event of a breakdown, this can save both time and money, as well as eliminating any need to search business directories to find an engineer that come out on short notice.

As homeowner budgets get stretched further during this time of economic instability, it is understandable that some feel that boiler insurance on top of home cover, heating and lighting bills would tip them over the edge financially, leaving them with little disposable income. However, with call out costs during the winter of 2010 reaching an average of £320 per household in Britain without boiler or heating system cover, purchasing a boiler cover policy could in the long run save you both money and time. As prices for boiler breakdown cover can start as low as £78 per year, it is arguable that those claiming it is too expensive are contributing to a false economy, collectively wasting millions of pounds that, with a little planning and foresight, could be saved and better spent.

But which type of cover is the right one for you? There are two different kinds of breakdown policy that cover boilers and central heating systems. Basic cover means that you are only covered in case of a boiler failure or a malfunction in its controls. If you take out a policy that covers your home’s whole central heating system, then you are covered in the eventuality of a boiler breakdown as well as if any problem occurs with your radiators or the pipes that feed your system. Understandably, the latter option is considerably more expensive.

Having taken all this into consideration and boiler insurance still seems too expensive for you to buy, or you still feel that it is not worth the expense, then it is worth considering the emergency call out charge for a qualified engineer to come and assess the damage done by your boiler breakdown if you do not possess any cover. This fee alone will probably be more than your yearly premium, without factoring in additional costs, such as labour, parts and the length of time it will take them to complete the repair. No one wants the discomfort and stress caused by a broken heating system, so it makes sense to be prepared, even if you are lucky enough to see the winter months through without a breakdown or maintenance issue.

6 Steps to Improving Your Credit Score

admin — Wed, 21 Dec 2011 18:43:51 +0000

It is undeniable – we are facing some hard economic times. In these times it is imperative that you keep your credit score as high as possible if you have any goals of buying a house or a car or anything else that will require lending. There are 6 key steps that you should strive to take in order to ensure the best credit score possible.

1. Reduce your open credit card utilization as much as possible

This may be the most important factor of all in boosting your score. If your credit cards are maxed out, you will be viewed as a high risk by many lenders. Strive to keep your utilization below 20% – if you’re already there, great! If not, put every extra cent you have towards reducing your utilization.

2. Make sure to pay all of your bills on time

This one is a no-brainer. If you establish a good history of on time payments, lenders will view you as having less risk and more credit worthy. Late payments can retain on your credit report for 7-10 years, so make sure that you keep up with the due dates!

3. Don’t close your old accounts!

Another important factor to your credit score is the average age of your accounts. By keeping an old card open that you don’t use, you add history to your report. If you were to go and close this account, your average history would be reduced thus decreasing your score.

4. Have a good variety and number of open accounts

This tip does not carry as much weight as some of the others mentioned above, but is also important. By carrying a mix of revolving (credit card) and installment (student loan, car loan) loans and paying them on time, you show that you are able to maintain responsibility which will increase your credit score.

5. Keep your hard credit inquiries to a minimum

This number resets every 2 years. You should strive to keep the number of requests for hard inquiries to under 2 in this time period if possible. Every time you apply for a credit card or a loan, this number is increased, which will slightly hurt your score.

6. Don’t rack up any derogatory marks

Items such as bankruptcies, accounts going to collection, liens and civil judgments can devastate your credit score. Make sure that you live within your means and pay everything on time. These marks could take up to 15 years to be removed from your report so prevent them as much as possible!

Effective Ways to Reduce Workers’ Compensation Claims and Related Costs

admin — Wed, 14 Dec 2011 22:55:50 +0000

Workers’ compensation insurance safeguards the employees, injured in the course of employment. In many states of US, it is a mandatory policy and is required by every company with employees.

Despite of all the preventive measures, instances of workplace injuries are increasing every year, forcing the business owners to spend huge amounts on compensation claims. According to U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), nearly 3.1 million non-fatal workplace injuries and illnesses were reported among private industry employers in 2010.

Hence, it is necessary for every employer to implement effective safety measures, not only to reduce compensation claims, but also to improve workplace safety and employee security.

Employing a comprehensive program, tailored to suit the organization’s specific needs and goals, helps the organization decrease the frequency as well as the severity of injuries at workplace. Following are few ways that can help you in establishing a risk free workplace, which further aid in reducing workers’ compensation claims and related costs.

Implement risk controlling measures
Employees working in industries, manufacturing plants, construction sites, etc., are often prone to on-job injuries and accidents. Working with heavy equipment using hazardous material raises employee safety concerns. Hence, every employer needs to follow a series of steps to improve workplace safety. These steps include – risk identification, risk assessment and risk control.

• Risk identification is identifying the possible hazard/risk. A hazard is anything that could hurt the employee or any other third party. For example, damaged or frayed electric cables are potential sources of accidents at workplaces.

• Risk assessment involves finding of all the potential outcomes of identified risks/hazards and the seriousness of the damage they could cause. In the above mentioned example, frayed electric cables, the harm could be an electrical shock.

• Risk control is nothing but fixing the hazards. The employer should eliminate the hazard; if not, should at least try to make hazards less dangerous. Replacing the damaged electric cords with new ones is one of the risk control measures to avoid electrical shocks.

Risk controlling measures vary according to the nature of the vulnerabilities. However, effectiveness of any step lies in proper review and implementation of safety measures on a regular basis.

Provide safety training to the employees
The next best way to reduce workplace injuries is by emphasizing on-job safety during training. Provide safety training to all the employees about safe handling of equipment, possible risks in the workplace, company safety rules and procedures, emergency procedures (usage of fire extinguishers, etc.), importance of personal protective equipment required on the job, etc. This kind of training helps employees acquire all the skills and knowledge required to be safe in the job location.

For instance, if a worker’s job involves working with sharp objects like broken glass, rusty metals, etc., his potential risks would be cuts and punctures on the skin. These risks could be avoided by providing hand gloves, and by offering an effective training on how to handle such things safely.

Be aware of the fraudulent claims
Insurance fraud occurs when the employees purposely provide some false information to receive the benefits of the claim. According to the Coalition Against Insurance Fraud, insurance fraud costs consumers, employers and insurance carriers at least $80 billion each and every year. Among which, worker’s compensation insurance fraud alone accounts for a considerable percentage.

Use efficient software to track claim costs
Automating and tracking your workers’ compensation claims process is another best way to reduce claim costs. Using effective claims management software eases your work as well as makes the process more accurate. With the help of such software you can instantly see all the expenses by the employee, type of injury, etc. It thus helps you save time and money besides taking control of your workers’ compensation claims.

A comprehensive workers’ compensation program always helps your organization do much more than simply saving the claim costs. It makes your workplace safer, secures employees and finally saves your organization from fraudulent claims.

Sometimes Financial Advisors Growth Is At The Expense Of Their Clients – A Marketing Fable

admin — Mon, 12 Dec 2011 18:20:44 +0000

Once upon a time, in a town not far away… there was a little general store. It was a nice little store, full of things that you need every day, like bread and butter and soap and potatoes. It also had things you don’t need very often such as glue and seed and axes but were appreciated by the customers.

The best part about the store was the very nice people behind the counter, Mr and Mrs Chumly. Whenever I went in, they would always say “Hello, how are you today Timmy?” It didn’t matter who came in, they always knew who they were and said hello to them by name.

Outside the store was a petrol pump and cans of oil. When Dad needed petrol, he would stop for a while and chat to Mr Chumly. Whenever I had to go there for Mum, she would give me a list of the things she needed for the week. I would hand Mr Chumly the list and he would walk around behind the counter picking each item off the shelves.

He knew us quite well, because sometimes he would say things like “The list just says ‘soap’, but not what kind. It’s lucky I know that ‘Skin-off’ is her favourite, so I’ll give her that one” or at another times he would say “Your mum’s having another baby next week, so I’ll add some extra tins of food so you can look after yourselves while she recovers.” He never had a very big range of things, but always seemed to have the ones we needed. Mum and Dad would run out of money sometimes, so Mr Chumly let them ‘book-it-up’ until they could pay for it. He even sent us a Christmas card each year.

One day, Mr Chumly changed the shop around. Dad said that it was because times were changing. He made the store bigger, added a lot more stuff and put shelves down the middle so you could pick the groceries yourself.

When I took the list in, I had to go around and get the stuff myself, which was so confusing since Mum didn’t always say exactly what she wanted. It’s hard to get it right now. We sometimes run out of things and I sometimes buy the wrong types.

We can’t book-it-up anymore either. We have to pay cash or just not buy it. My Chumly says that he has cut the price of a lot of the things, so this should make up for it. He also stopped stocking seed and axes and took the petrol pump out. Dad never goes there now and no longer chats to Mr Chumly. I really miss the old general store and Mr Chumly being so helpful to us.

So what REALLY changed? Mr Chumly set his sights on a much greater number of customers. To do this, he offered a wider range, made the store self-help and lowered prices. BUT – he severely sacrificed service. By adding a much wider range of products, his thinking was that people would respond to choice over personal advice on the best ones – WRONG! Most importantly – he failed to keep in touch with the customers who had trusted him and who had placed a high value on his knowledge and friendship.