With many employees now working form home in Weston and across South Florida, workers are enjoying more flexibility than ever before, including the ability to set up their home office just as they wish. While working form home has many perks, if you’re injured while performing work duties, your situation can quickly become complicated.
Are You Covered for Work Injuries in Weston if You Work from Home?
If you work from home as a freelancer or contractor, you are not typically covered by workers’ compensation, though you may have a claim if you’re misclassified. If you are an employee and work from home, your work-related injuries may be covered and you may be able to seek compensation for medical bills and lost income for qualifying injuries.
However, work from home arrangements can blur the line between work injuries and injuries you sustain at home (when not working). Insurance companies may questions work from home job site injuries more closely and there are typically no witnesses to help you prove your injuries were sustained at work. You can successfully apply for workers’ compensation, though many injured workers choose to work with a Weston worksite injury claims attorney because of the complexity of work-at-home injury cases.
Preventing At-Home Work Injuries
There are a few things you can do when you work at home to reduce your risk of work injuries and increase your chances of a successful claim if the worst does happen:
- Understand insurance: Check your homeowners’ insurance policy. You may be able to buy additional coverage for your work at home arrangement. Make sure you understand whether your employers’ workers’ compensation policy covers you. If it does not, you may wish to consider additional insurance to protect you.
- Set up your home office space ergonomically: Choose a comfortable chair and desk which places your monitor at eye-level and lets you sit straight up with your feet on the floor. An ergonomic space may help prevent repetitive-stress injuries.
- Create good boundaries between work and non-work: It will be easier for you to prove an injury was work-related if you can show you have clear work-related tasks and areas for work.
- Avoid working when you’re distracted or sleepy: Your response times and decision-making are compromised when you’re fatigued or unfocused, which can increase the risk of falls, mistakes, and injuries.
- Keep your work area clean and well-lit: Remove any obstructions on the floor or in low-visibility areas to reduce the risk of trip and fall injuries in your Weston home and workplace. Good lighting can also reduce the risk of eye strain.
- Take breaks: Regular breaks are important to reduce the risk of repetitive-strain injuries, overwork, and even deep-vein thrombosis (which can be caused by sitting for a long time). When you work at home, there are no regular interruptions from co-workers or set break times, so you may want to set up a schedule or a timer to ensure you take regular breaks.
- Keep great records: Keep a schedule or log, outlining when you’re working and when you’re not. Having documentation of what you’re working on at any time can help you if you are injured and need to make a claim.
What To Do if You’re Injured
If you’re injured, document everything and take photos of the place where you were injured, as well as the surrounding area. You may wish to contact an attorney to find out whether you have a claim. You can always call Flaxman Law Group at 1-866-352-9626 (1-866-FLAXMAN) to schedule a free accident consultation with a Weston workplace injury claims attorney.