A Virginia workers’ compensation claim is a request for medical care and wage benefits from your employer’s insurance after you are hurt on the job or become ill because of your work. The claim is decided by the Virginia Workers’ Compensation Commission, not by a jury, and it runs on strict notice and filing deadlines.
Blank Kim Injury Law represents injured workers from Fairfax, Tysons, Chantilly, Manassas and the rest of Northern Virginia. We help you file correctly, respond when benefits are denied or cut off, and look for a separate injury claim against anyone other than your employer who caused the harm. Attorney Robert Kim speaks Korean, and our paralegal team speaks Spanish.
What Virginia workers’ compensation pays for
Workers’ compensation is a benefits system. It does not pay for pain and suffering, but it can cover the two things most injured workers worry about first: treatment and a paycheck.
- Medical care. Reasonable and necessary treatment for the work injury, including doctor visits, surgery, therapy, prescriptions and related care, under Va. Code § 65.2-603.
- Wage benefits while you cannot work. Generally two-thirds of your average weekly wage, subject to minimum and maximum limits set each year, under Va. Code § 65.2-500.
- Partial wage benefits. When you can return to lighter work at lower pay, benefits may make up part of the difference.
- Permanent impairment benefits. A lasting loss of use of a body part, such as a hand, arm or leg, can support an additional award.
- Death benefits. When a work injury is fatal, dependents may receive benefits and funeral expenses.
Average weekly wage is often calculated too low, especially for workers with overtime, a second job or seasonal hours. We check the wage records the insurer relied on before you accept a benefit rate.
Workers’ compensation deadlines in Virginia
Two deadlines catch more injured workers than any other rule. Telling a supervisor is not the same as filing a claim, and filing a claim is not the same as receiving an award.
| Step | Deadline | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Report the injury to your employer, in writing if possible | Within 30 days of the accident | Va. Code § 65.2-600 |
| File your claim with the Virginia Workers’ Compensation Commission | Within two years of the accident | Va. Code § 65.2-601 |
| Occupational disease claims | Separate rules apply | Va. Code § 65.2-400 et seq. |
| Lawsuit against a negligent third party | Generally two years from the injury | Va. Code § 8.01-243(A) |
An employer’s own accident report does not file a claim for you. If the insurer is paying some benefits voluntarily, the two-year clock can still be running. Federal employees follow a different system; see our page on federal employee FECA claims.
What to do after you are hurt at work
- Get medical care. If it is an emergency, call 911 or go to the nearest emergency room; serious trauma in Northern Virginia is often taken to Inova Fairfax Medical Campus in Falls Church.
- Report the injury to a supervisor as soon as you can, and put it in writing with the date, time, place and what happened.
- Tell every doctor that the injury happened at work, so the medical records say so from the first visit.
- Write down the names of coworkers who saw the accident, and photograph the equipment, floor, ladder or vehicle involved.
- Keep copies of pay stubs, work schedules and any light-duty offers.
- Be careful with recorded statements to the insurance adjuster. Ask for time to speak with an attorney first.
If you are unsure whether your injury counts as work related, ask for a free case review before you decide not to report it.
How the Virginia Workers’ Compensation Commission decides a claim
After an injury is reported, the employer’s insurer either accepts the claim and begins paying, or it disputes some or all of it. A worker whose claim is disputed can ask the Commission to decide. The Commission holds hearings, takes medical records and testimony, and issues an award or a denial.
Most disputes come down to evidence. The insurer may argue the injury happened away from work, that a condition existed before the job, that you refused suitable light duty, or that you missed a deadline. Medical opinions carry great weight, and a treating doctor’s note that simply says “work related” is often not enough. We work with your physicians so the records address the questions the Commission will ask.
Benefits that are awarded can later be suspended if the insurer claims you have recovered or returned to work. Those applications have their own procedures, and responding on time matters.
When you can sue someone other than your employer
Workers’ compensation is generally the exclusive remedy against your employer, under Va. Code § 65.2-307. You usually cannot sue your own employer for a work injury. But Virginia law allows a separate claim against a third party whose negligence caused the injury, under Va. Code § 65.2-309.
- A driver who hit you while you were driving for work or making deliveries. See delivery driver accident claims.
- A general contractor or another company’s crew on a construction site.
- The manufacturer of a defective machine, tool or forklift. See product liability claims.
- A property owner whose premises were unsafe when you were working there.
A third-party claim can include pain and suffering and full lost earnings, which comp does not pay. It follows ordinary Virginia injury law, including the contributory negligence rule, and the comp insurer usually has a right to be repaid from the recovery. Whether a company on the job counts as a true third party is often the central question, and we look at it early.
Northern Virginia workers we represent
Northern Virginia’s workforce is wide: builders on projects along the Silver Line and in Tysons, drivers and warehouse crews in the Chantilly and Dulles corridor, hospital and nursing staff, restaurant and hotel workers, landscapers and government contractors. We handle claims for:
- Construction workers, including falls from scaffolding and trench collapses
- Warehouse and distribution workers
- Office, factory and retail workers with repetitive injuries such as carpal tunnel syndrome
- Electricians and line workers with electrical injuries
- Road crews hurt in work zone crashes
- Federal employees at the Pentagon, Fort Belvoir and agency offices, whose claims go through FECA
How our Virginia workers’ comp lawyers help
- Free case review. Tell us what happened by phone or through the form on this page. There is no obligation to hire us.
- Deadlines and filings. We confirm the notice and claim dates and file with the Commission when it is needed.
- Medical and wage evidence. We gather records, work with your doctors and check the average weekly wage.
- Hearings. When the insurer disputes the claim, we present the evidence at the Commission.
- Third-party claims. We investigate whether someone outside your employer is responsible and, if so, pursue that claim in the right Virginia court.
Many of our clients work in Spanish or Korean. You can talk with our team in the language you are most comfortable using.
