5 Things to Avoid in an Iowa Workers Comp Claim

Last Updated: 10/24/2024

Every year in Iowa there are usually more than 35,000 nonfatal work injuries reported. Thankfully, most of these injuries are relatively minor and the injured worker requires little, if any, medical care. However, there are thousands of workers each year who sustain serious injuries that will forever change their working lives.

Here are 5 things that you should never do while pursuing a workers’ compensation case.

1. Lie or exaggerate your injuries

Insurance companies are very detailed and aggressive in determining which claims they will pay and which claims they will deny. If they catch you in a lie early on in your case then there is a significant chance that they will deny your case.

This means no more medical care or money through the insurance company. Yes, you may be able to file a workers’ compensation petition, have a trial, and go through the appeals process, but the fact is that it can take years after a denial before you see any additional money.

You should never exaggerate your symptoms because your doctor and other medical providers are trained to detect when a patient is not being 100% honest. The doctors you are seeing were likely chosen by the insurance company and are already looking for a way to discredit you and your case.

Many medical providers who treat injured workers are biased because they have seen a few injured workers who were exaggerating their injuries. While 99%+ of Iowa workers are honest, fair, and just want to get back to work, if you exaggerate your medical condition then you may be branded as a fraud.

2. Do work or other activities outside of your restrictions

It is common for work comp insurance companies to hire a private investigator to film you while you are going to doctor appointments and while you are at your home. If your doctor gives you a restriction of no lifting more than 10 pounds this applies to your job and the rest of your life.

If you are videotaped lifting more than 10 pounds then you are facing a risk of an additional injury, you have likely decreased the value of your case and the video will likely be shown to your doctor who may then release you back to full duty with no restrictions.

At work, you should keep a copy of your restrictions in your pocket or locker in case you are asked to work outside of your restrictions. If this happens then you should notify the person that you have work restrictions that you can show him/her that you are required to follow upon doctors’ orders.

If they persist in asking you to work outside of your restrictions then you should tell your medical providers, the supervisor of the person asking you do to this, and the insurance adjustor if you are not represented by an attorney.

3. Refuse work offered to you within your restrictions

Under Iowa law, your employer is supposed to provide you with a written offer of work setting forth several things following a work injury. If your employer offers you work (in writing or verbally) that is within your restrictions you should go in and at least try to do the work. If the work is outside of your written work restrictions, then you need to notify your supervisor, etc. as described above.

If you refuse work that is offered to you within your restrictions:

1. You can be fired and will likely not receive weekly workers’ compensation benefits.

2. You can apply for, but will likely be denied unemployment benefits because you refused work offered to you.

3. The value of your workers’ compensation case will usually be greatly reduced by what will be called a “voluntary quit” for refusing work being offered.

4. Quit your job

Sometimes your employer and co-workers can make it very difficult and stressful for you to continue to work. However, if you decide to quit your job several things will likely happen:

1. You will not receive weekly workers’ compensation because your employer will notify the insurance company that you quit even though they had work available to you.

2. You may be denied unemployment benefits because it is your burden if you quit to prove you had good cause to do so attributable to the employer.

3. It can greatly reduce the value of your workers’ compensation case even if your injuries are severe and serious.

5. Do side work while you are receiving weekly TTD

If the insurance company is paying you weekly TTD (temporary total disability benefits) this means that you are either completely taken off work by their doctors or you have been given temporary work restrictions that your employer is not able or willing to accommodate.

If you decide to do other work for cash or a regular paycheck you take a big risk that you will be videotaped and/or the insurance company will learn about the work and reduce your weekly payments by the amount of money you are earning on the side.

Neither of these circumstances benefit you in the long run and we have represented injured workers who failed to take our advice and it ended up costing them tens of thousands of dollars later. Simply put, it is not worth it.

Contacting a Work Injury Lawyer in Iowa

This is just a partial list of things that you should avoid doing while pursuing a workers comp. claim in Iowa. To learn more about Iowa work injuries including how you can avoid 7 Deadly Mistakes then request a copy of Iowa Workers’ Compensation Guide- An Insider’s Guide to Work Injuries. Our book includes the Iowa Injured Workers’ Bill of Rights and much more.

We offer our book at no cost to you because we have seen too many hardworking medical providers and other Iowa workers get taken advantage of by greedy insurance companies. There is no risk and your information will remain confidential so claim your copy now before you make a costly mistake in your work injury case. Finally, you can learn about Iowa work injury laws in the comfort of your own home. If you need immediate assistance, call us at 641-792-3595 (phones are answered 24/7) or Contact Us Here.

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