Delivery drivers are a vital part of business, particularly if you're a company that deals with shipping. They transport packages from the shipper to their final destination. This happens every day all over the world.
This type of job may not seem like a hazardous occupation, but certain circumstances could change that and accidents can often happen.
If you've been injured on the job—whether it was a fall from your truck, an auto accident, or something else—you may be entitled to receive compensation and benefits in California through a workers’ comp lawyer.
Job-Related Risks
A delivery driver’s job has many components, including ones that come with serious risks. In addition to driving packages to their destinations and walking them to the door, their duties may also include loading their trucks—and even operating the forklifts and other heavy equipment necessary to do so.
Throughout this process, the opportunities for serious injury are numerous. Here are just some of the workplace hazards they face:
- Animal attacks
- Crush injuries from falling boxes
- Forklift (and other heavy equipment) accidents
- Motor vehicle accidents
- Repetitive stress injuries
- Slip and falls
When in transit, drivers are also prone to:
- Amputations
- Back, neck, shoulder, knee, wrist, hand, or ankle injuries
- Carpal tunnel syndrome
- Fractured, broken, or crushed bones
- Head and brain injuries
- Lacerations, contusions, and abrasions
- Paralysis
- Pet bites
- Repetitive motion disorders
- Spinal cord damage
- Whiplash and other soft-tissue injuries
Compensation and Benefits
The above risk types make drivers eligible for benefits and compensation with the help of worker injury lawyers. Companies that hire three or more employees must have workers' compensation insurance, regardless of whether their workers are full-time, part-time, temporary, or seasonal.
A system that provides medical treatment and income replacement benefits to workers injured while on the job, workers' compensation also helps injured employees recover quickly and return to work as early as possible.
Delivery drivers, especially those involved in car accidents while delivering packages, may be entitled to the following benefits after suffering an on-the-job injury:
- Death Benefits: When a delivery driver has been killed on the job, the families of those who died may be entitled to death benefits that include reasonable funeral and burial expenses of up to $10,000 and ongoing weekly payments for the family members left behind.
- Income Replacement: Delivery drivers out of work for more than seven days may be eligible for temporary total disability (TTD) payments equal to two-thirds of their average weekly income in the weeks of unemployment.
Those who can return to work on light or restricted duty may be eligible for temporary partial disability (TPD) payments, which are the difference between what they were earning before their accident and what they earn in their current position.
There are other potentially available income benefits that injured workers may be entitled to.
- Medical Care: Compensation law requires that employers cover reasonable, necessary, and authorized medical costs related to workplace injuries through a workers’ comp insurance.
Conclusion
Immediately notify your supervisor if you are injured on the job. Seek immediate medical attention to limit long-term effects such as permanent disability or death. It is your right as an employee to claim these benefits and compensation when you befall these risks at work.
Book an appointment today with a work injury lawyer from Pacific Workers', The Lawyers for Injured Workers. We get the proper compensation for any accident or injury sustained on the job. Get your free consultation by calling 800-606-6999 or arranging a meeting through our website!