What to do after you get hurt at work in California

Go to a doctor. Tell your employer in writing. Get the claim form, the DWC-1, and turn it in. Do those three things and most of the protections in California law start working for you, including up to $10,000 in treatment while the insurance company makes up its mind.

Today

Get looked at, and say it happened at work

If it's an emergency, go to the ER or call 911. Otherwise, see a doctor today anyway. Backs, necks, concussions and wrists have a way of feeling "fine" on Monday and terrible by Thursday.

Tell every nurse and doctor that you got hurt at work and how. Those notes become evidence. If the chart says "patient fell at home," you'll spend months undoing that.

Your employer may send you to a doctor in its Medical Provider Network. That's normal. If you told your employer in writing before you got hurt that you wanted your own doctor (it's called predesignation), you might be able to use that doctor instead. The medical treatment guide covers both.

Tell your supervisor, then put it in writing

Say it out loud the same day if you can. Then send a text or email with the date, the time, where it happened and what happened. Screenshot it. The legal deadline is 30 days (Labor Code section 5400), but a report sent the same day is much harder to argue with than one sent three weeks later.

Hurt over time instead of all at once, like carpal tunnel or hearing loss? The "date of injury" is the day you were first disabled by it and knew, or should have known, your job caused it.

This week

Get the DWC-1 claim form

Once your employer knows about an injury that needs more than first aid or keeps you out past your shift, it has one working day to give you the claim form (Labor Code section 5401). If nobody hands it to you, ask in writing. You can also print it from the state's website.

Fill out your part and turn it in

Fill in only the "Employee" section. List every body part that hurts, not just the worst one. If your back and your knee both took the hit, write both. Keep a copy, give the rest to your employer, and if you mail it, use certified mail with a return receipt so you can prove the date. Our walkthrough of the DWC-1 goes box by box.

Your employer then has one working day to fill in its section, hand you a dated copy and send the form to its insurance company. That dated copy is your proof of filing. Don't lose it.

Use the $10,000

Within one working day after you file, up to $10,000 in treatment has to be authorized while the claim is pending (Labor Code section 5402(c)). If nobody approves your appointments, ask your supervisor or the claims adjuster, in writing, to authorize them now. That's what the state's own instructions on the DWC-1 tell you to do.

You can reach our office at (323) 656-9040.

The next 90 days

Within 14 days you should get a letter saying the claim is accepted or being investigated. If your doctor has you off work, your first temporary disability check is due within 14 days of your employer knowing about the injury and the time off.

Then there's day 90. If the insurance company hasn't denied your claim within 90 days of when you filed the claim form, the law presumes it's covered (Labor Code section 5402(b)). Mark that date on your calendar.

Keep a folder

Paper or on your phone, it doesn't matter. What matters is that it's all in one place when someone asks:

• Your copy of the DWC-1 and the dated copy from your employer
• Every letter from the insurance company, with the date it arrived
• Doctor's notes, work restrictions and appointment dates
• Pay stubs from before and after the injury
• Names and numbers of coworkers who saw it happen
• Photos of where you got hurt, and of the injury
• Miles driven to and from medical appointments

The next year

You have one year to open a case with the Workers' Compensation Appeals Board. The clock runs from the date of injury or from the last benefit you were paid, whichever comes later (Labor Code section 5405). A year sounds like a lot. It goes fast when you're waiting on letters.

Sources: DWC-1 claim form and Notice of Potential Eligibility; California Labor Code § 5400, § 5401, § 5402, § 5405, § 5412, § 4650.

Mistakes we'd rather you didn't make

Waiting to report is the big one. It hands the insurance company an easy argument that you got hurt somewhere else. Close behind: leaving body parts off the form, letting a doctor write it up as a non-work injury, and signing anything from the insurance company before someone you trust has read it. And think twice before posting about your injury online. Insurers can look at what you post publicly.

When it's time to call a lawyer

Plenty of simple claims go fine without one, and the state's Information and Assistance officers answer questions for free at 1-800-736-7401. Call us if the claim gets denied or stalls, your doctor's treatment request gets refused, your checks are late or short, or you get fired or lose hours after reporting. That last one is illegal under Labor Code section 132a, and our page on retaliation for filing a claim explains what you can do. Also call if another driver or company helped cause your injury, which happens a lot in work car accidents, or if someone wants you to sign a settlement. The first call is free.

Two things people ask on the first call