By: Worker's Compensation Practice Group
The busy months of November and December bring with them lots of traveling, which means employees may be driving in higher traffic conditions, sometimes on icy roads. In regards to the compensability of motor vehicle accidents, Virginia follows the “street risk doctrine.”
Workers' Compensation Director, Amanda T. Belliveau spoke at the Commonwealth Contractors Management Seminar on November 14, 2017. The event, hosted by CCGSIA, covered a range of topics including OSHA visit preparedness, return to work programs, toxicology and its impact on workers’ compensation, and distracted driving.
.png?width=254&name=HubSpot%20Featured%20Image_Work%20Injury%20Claim%20Form%20(1).png)
How often have you heard, “I don’t know why I fell?” Quite often, claimants will be unable to explain how the accident occurred but they will file for workers’ compensation benefits because the injury occurred at the workplace. These situations are known as unexplained accident claims and they can be difficult to navigate because the claimant has suffered an injury, which occurred in the course of her employment, but she can provide no explanation of how the accident occurred.
In Virginia, it is the claimant’s burden to show that there is a causal connection between the injury and her employment. This properly places the burden on the claimant to show a link between the accident and a condition of her workplace. Consequently, the accident which
Virginia case law has consistently held that in order to prove an “injury by accident,” a claimant must show:
“(1) an identifiable incident; (2) that occurs at some reasonably definite time; (3) an obvious sudden mechanical or structural change in the body; and (4) a causal connection between the incident and the bodily change.” Chesterfield Co. v. Dunn, 9 Va. App. 475, 476, 389 S.E.2d 180, 181 (1990). “Repetitive activity” or “repetitive trauma” injuries are not covered by the Virginia Workers’ Compensation Act. However, in Van Buren v. Augusta County., 66 Va. App. 441 (2016), the Court of Appeals held that a firefighter who noticed neck and shoulder pain after a 45-minute rescue suffered an injury by accident. The Commission followed that decision in Dugger v. Riverside Regional Jail Authority, JCN VA00001117636 (Jan. 3, 2017), holding that the claimant proved an injury by accident where she noticed a swollen knee after engaging in 4 hours of physical tactics training. Those decisions suggested a fundamental change in the definition of “injury by accident.”
By: Workers’ Compensation Practice Group
The leaves are beginning to turn and the holiday season is quickly approaching, which means it is the time of year when retail establishments often take on additional employees. Some businesses contract out certain duties rather than having their own employees perform that work. In Virginia, a business that contracts out work can be liable as a “statutory employer” if an employee of the contractor is injured on the job.
