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You Can Learn From My Mistakes

After being involved in a serious car accident, I really believed that my insurance company would take care of everything. It wasn't until I finally received their settlement offer that I realized they were not on my side at all. This is when I got wise and consulted a personal injury lawyer. It was the best decision I could have made. Thanks to my attorney, not only did I learn a lot about personal injury law, but I actually got the compensation that I needed and deserved. I made a lot of mistakes after my accident, but I also learned a lot along the way. It is my hope that this blog will allow other accident victims to learn from common mistakes and get the information they need to be successful in their own personal injury claims.

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You Can Learn From My Mistakes

Not Exactly James Bond: Understanding Worker's Compensation Spies

by Riley Sanchez

Worker's compensation is absolutely vital after experiencing a serious injury that keeps you from working. However, once you get your benefits, you may be in danger of dealing with worker's compensation spies. These private investigators are trying to help your employers deny your benefits, even if they're truly deserved.

Why Would My Employer Spy On Me?

Employers are often pretty unhappy to pay worker's compensation: after all, they're paying somebody who isn't technically working. But, if they have pictures of you performing physical acts, they may be able to convince a judge that you are faking your injury.

And if they do, you may suddenly lose your benefits and, likely, any job you would have had once your injury had healed. Even worse, if you're not faking your injury, you're suddenly stuck with no way to pay medical bills or to support yourself.

How Do Worker's Comp Spies Work?

A worker's comp spy will often sit outside your house for days, weeks and months trying to find evidence that you faked your injury. Sometimes, they'll follow you around town waiting for you to "slip up."

"Evidence" that you faked an injury can be as innocuous as taking out your trash, washing your car or even exercising in your own home. Even if your injury is real and you're doing exercises your doctor suggested, your employer may try to use these acts to prove you are faking.

How Can I Spot Spies?

There are a variety of extremely simple tricks that worker's comp investigators use to hide their identity. Often, they'll drive cars with darkened windows and wear a variety of baseball caps. Others will switch glasses, wear fake facial hair and change clothes in their car.

That's why it would be smart to regularly check for cars parked along your street. Have they been parked there for hours? Did they suddenly move to another location along the street for no obvious reason? If so, you may have a spy.

Do Spies Try to Trap Me?

A majority of worker's compensation investigators are just people trying to make an honest wage, but there is a minority that will perform unethical acts to "catch" you. These activities include:

  • Spreading trash around your yard
  • Throwing mud on your vehicle
  • Paying your neighbors to sit in their home and watch you in your back yard
  • Stalk your social media

There's no need to panic if you feel like you're being watched by a worker's compensation spy. If your injuries are real, you're unlikely to be performing the physical activities for which they're watching you. So, if you find trash spread all over your yard one morning, it may be a good idea to have somebody else pick it up for you. Contact a company like Robinson & Kole for more information.

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