In Kentucky, Can You Make a Worker’s Compensation Claim and Personal Injury Claim after a Vehicle Accident?

Discover how you can maximize your claims when you are injured in a motor vehicle accident while at work. Kentucky allows you to claim both workers' compensation benefits and personal injury damages so long as you do not duplicate them.
The simple answer is yes. However, you cannot duplicate benefits.

Kentucky Workers’ compensation benefits provide three distinct benefits:

1. Full coverage for medical expenses for the rest of your life so long your medical expenses are related to the injuries suffered in the work related accident. (this benefit is a tremendous benefit because workers’ compensation pays for 100% of your medical expenses(no deductibles or coinsurance limits)) and it lasts for your entire life.

2. 2/3rds wage replacement for time off work due to your accident.

3. Award for permanent impairment rating should your injury be permanent in nature.

Kentucky laws provide for the following personal injury damages:

1. Medical expenses incurred in the past and future medical expenses to the extent the treating doctor can anticipate them to be incurred in the future. You will have to reimburse your workers' compensation carrier for the recovery of the medical expenses.

2. Pain and Suffering. A reasonable amount of money to compensate you for the pain, inconvenience, impairment of lifestyle, etc. This damage is not part of the workers’ compensation system.

3.Past and Future Lost Wages. This element of damage is similar to the wage benefits provided through workers’ compensation. An auto accident victim would be entitled to the 1/3 of past wages not paid by workers’ compensation (called “excess lost wages”) and the car wreck victim would be entitled to any impairment to his earning capacity minus the award for permanent impairment rating.

A lot of states make you choose between a workers’ compensation claim and a personal injury claim or simply limit you to a workers’ compensation claim. Kentucky allows you to make both but not to duplicate.