Which Injuries Are Eligible For Workers’ Comp In South Carolina?

In South Carolina, you can seek workers’ compensation for any unexpected physical or psychological injury that you receive as a result of performing your work. This can include injuries from specific incidents as well as injuries that develop over time due to the strain caused by repetitive motions.

For the most part, fault does not matter. South Carolina workers’ compensation is a “no-fault” system, meaning that you do not need to prove your employer caused your injury. If you get injured because of something you did during work, your injury may still be compensable.

Work-Related Injuries Can Take All Forms

In South Carolina, workers’ compensation covers any injury that occurs “by accident” and “in the course of employment.” These injuries can take many forms, including:

•      Broken bones
•      Sprained ankles
•      Back strain
•      Ligament damage
•      Carpal tunnel syndrome
•      Physical disfigurement
•      Brain injuries
•      Permanent disability
•      Psychological trauma

The key is that you must be able to show you suffered the injury while performing your work duties. In the case of muscle strain, carpal tunnel syndrome and other injuries caused by repetitive trauma, you must show that your work duties caused the injury over time.

Work-Related Injuries Can Occur Outside The Office

Workers’ compensation may also cover injuries that occur outside of the office or away from the factory floor. Any injury you suffer while performing your work duties may be compensable.

One common example is a worker who gets into a crash while driving a work vehicle. That worker most likely qualifies for workers’ compensation. Even if you drive your own vehicle on work business, you may be covered.

Workers’ compensation won’t typically cover any injuries you suffer from a crash on your morning or evening commute, but the circumstances always matter. For example, a lineman working on power poles during a storm will likely be covered from the time he leaves his house until the time he returns.

Similarly, nurses who conduct home visits may receive workers’ compensation for injuries they suffer in a client’s home. First responders may receive workers’ compensation for injuries they receive anywhere their work brings them.

The key question is whether you were performing work when you suffered your injury.

Unexpected Injuries Versus Expected Work Injuries

Although workers’ compensation is a no-fault system, insurance companies will look for ways to differentiate or avoid claims. One of their frequent arguments is that the injury was not “unexpected.” This matters because South Carolina’s courts have determined that workers’ compensation only covers unexpected injuries. It does not cover expected injuries.

There are relatively few “expected” work-related injuries, and they tend to result from one of two situations:

• Your injury may be expected if you suffer it because you choose to disregard a doctor’s permanent work restriction. For example, if your doctor wrote that you were not to lift more than 10 pounds and you hurt yourself while lifting 50 pounds, that injury may be expected.
• Your injury may also be expected, or outside the course of employment, if your employer repeatedly warns you not to perform a specific activity and you injure yourself while performing that activity. As an example, a grocery store worker whose employer repeatedly warned him, with documentation, to stop chasing shoplifters out of the store may not get workers’ compensation for an injury he suffered while chasing a shoplifter out of the store. 

Get The Benefits You Deserve

If you’ve suffered an injury as the result of your work, that injury may qualify for workers’ compensation benefits. You don’t need to prove your employer did anything wrong to cause the accident, but you will want evidence to show that the injury was a result of your work activities and was unexpected by you.

You will also want to understand the benefits you might deserve. You likely know that workers’ compensation can help with your medical bills and lost wages, but you may also deserve other benefits, depending on your circumstances. An experienced workers’ compensation attorney can help you make the most of your claim, deal with the insurance company and get the compensation you deserve.