Death Benefits

Securing Death Benefits for Survivors

Indiana workers’ comp provides death benefits for a surviving spouse or children when an employee dies because of an on-the-job accident. These benefits include funeral and burial expenses and 500 weeks of disability payments. If you have lost a loved one in a work-related accident, contact a lawyer to learn about your rights under Indiana work comp law. Schedule your free initial consultation today.

Leading workers’ comp lawyers

At the Carmel law firm of Wagner Reese & Crossen, our attorneys are among the foremost workers’ compensation lawyers in the state. We have handled thousands of work injury cases since 1997, helping injured workers collect the maximum benefit possible. We have also developed many third party injury claims when the accident was caused by a third party who was not the injured worker’s employer. Many of these cases involved the death of an employee.

Lump sum award negotiations

Because the workers’ compensation death benefits terminate in certain circumstances such as if the surviving spouse remarries, it may be in the survivor’s best interests to negotiate a lump sum award. We have successfully negotiated settlements of all types, including lump sum awards in death cases. We advise about the advantages and drawbacks of this approach.

Representing survivors when an autopsy is requested

If the employer and insurance company is fighting the award, they may request an autopsy. Their purpose in doing this is to determine whether drugs or alcohol played any role in the death, giving them a cause to deny the death benefit claim. It is especially important to have legal representation if an autopsy has been requested.

Helping survivors who were not immediate family of the deceased

We have helped people who were dependent on the deceased but not the immediate family obtain death benefits. The key in such cases is demonstrating economic dependency. If they received groceries, rides and rent money from the deceased, they may eligible for death benefits as a “dependent-in-fact.”

These are a few of the reasons why it helps to have an experienced attorney while seeking death benefits under Indiana workers’ compensation law, even if the claim has been accepted as compensable. If you have lost a loved one in a workplace accident, contact an experienced lawyer to learn about your right to an award under the Indiana Workers’ Compensation law. Call Wagner Reese & Crossen toll-free at 800-792-0332.