Under Arizona law, it is mandatory for employers to secure workers’ compensation insurance for their employees. If you sustain an injury at work, you are entitled to receive medical and compensation benefits. However, it is your responsibility to file your workers’ compensation claim in a timely manner to ensure you receive the compensation you are entitled to.
Workers’ compensation is a “no fault” system in which an injured employee is entitled to receive medical and compensation benefits no matter who causes the job-related accident. This means that even if the employee was at fault or partially at fault in causing the work-related injury, they will still be entitled to benefits under the workers’ compensation system. However, an employee is not entitled to workers’ compensation benefits for injuries that are “purposely self-inflicted.”
Worker’s Compensation Eligibility
In Arizona say employers must provide workers’ compensation for full-time and part-time workers. This applies even if an employer only has one employee. However, certain employees do not need workers’ compensation, including: Independent contractors; employees whose employment is casual and not included in the normal operation of business; and domestic employees who work in a private home.
Filing a Claim in Arizona
In Arizona, if you are an injured employee, you are required to file a claim with the Industrial Commission of Arizona (ICA) within one year of the date of your work-related injury. To file your initial claim with the ICA, you are required to submit a Workers Report of Injury Form. By law it is required that when you are receiving treatment for your injury at your doctor’s office, your physician must complete and submit this form for you. Your employer must also report a claim regarding your injury within 10 days of learning about it.
After your claim is submitted, the ICA will send you an acknowledgement of receipt letter. Your employer’s insurance carrier will then deny or accept the claim within 21 days of their notification of the claim. If your claim is denied or you disagree with the amount of compensation you receive, you have 90 days to file an appeal to request a hearing. You can do this by filling out a hearing request form from the ICA or writing a letter to the ICA. Then, you will receive a letter from the ICA detailing the date and time of your hearing. Usually, there is a three month wait before your hearing.
Benefits
Arizona workers’ compensation benefits are calculated according to seriousness of the employee’s work-related injury. The amount is usually a certain percentage of your average monthly income. Injuries are categorized in 1 of 4 ways to determine wage compensation:
- Temporary partial disability: applicable to those who can still work but in a reduced capacity. An example of this would be a broken leg. A clerk who breaks their leg may still be able to complete their normal tasks like filing and speaking on the phone. However, they may not be able to drive to work.
- Temporary total disability: applicable to those who are temporarily unable to work. An example of this would be an employee who has surgery and cannot work. If a labor worker has surgery on their leg, they may be unable to work for several months.
- Permanent partial disability: applicable to those who suffered a permanent injury but are still able to work in some capacity. This means that the employee has an impairment that didn’t go away after they recovered from a workplace injury or illness. For example, carpal tunnel or hearing loss.
- Permanent full disability: applicable to those whose injury is so severe that they’ll never be able to work again. For example, spinal cord or brain injuries.
Once the wage loss benefits are calculated according to the nature of the injury, Arizona workers’ compensation wage loss benefits are payable at 66{eda8e1c225e804837800f6aac282101cad58fa80c7c6b007f61da1d364201bb5} of the injured worker’s gross monthly salary. An injured employee can also receive compensation in the form of coverage for medical expenses, disability benefits, funeral costs, and ongoing care.