Corporations Hire Private Investigators to Follow YOU After You Get Hurt On the Job
Before your Virginia Workers Comp claim ever gets put on the Hearing docket, and your name is found on the door of the Hearing room, the insurance company, the employer and their lawyers will have made use of their: private investigators, nurse “case managers,” social media searches, personnel file review, insurance industry “indexing” and other tools at their disposal to deny and defeat your claim
Corporations will hire private investigators after you are injured on the job. Insurance Companies and Employers do this routinely in order to gather information that they hope will help them reduce or eliminate their exposure to pay for benefits under the state workers compensation laws. They claim they do this to verify that your claim is not fraudulent. When you are unable to return to work right away, the insurance company has a lot of tools at its disposal to verify your disability status. They can pour over your medical records, pre- and post-injury, looking for any scrap of evidence to deny your claim. They can send your file to defense lawyers who review medical records, recorded statements and witnesses’ accounts to attack your credibility and honesty.
In cases where there will be lengthy or complicated medical treatment, the insurance company will hire a “nurse case manager” to attend your appointments and speak with the doctor and the staff outside of your or your lawyer’s presence, as well as obtain information directly from you. They do background searches on you to see if you have a criminal or civil record. Obviously they will check to see if you ever filed a workers’ compensation, personal injury or other claim before. This is sometimes called “indexing,” the insurance companies share information regarding prior claims, care, payments and litigation. The insurance company’s agents or attorneys will also do social media and Internet searches on you and your family members. They also can hire private investigators to follow you and your family around and take video recordings of your activities, even when you are inside your home.
In one case handled by Virginia workplace injury lawyer Doug Landau, of the Herndon law firm ABRAMS LANDAU, Ltd., the insurance company secret agent used a video camera on a 2-story telescoping pole to film an injured worker’s activities inside the man;s own apartment. Since the camera was out on the street, the judge ruled that the film would be admitted into evidence, since the filming was done “in a public place.” With all these resources at the disposal of the insurance company, it is hard to believe that injured workers can ever win their workers compensation claims in Virginia or the District of Columbia.
The invasions of privacy is also disturbing to many of Landau’s clients, as the insurance company gains access to pre-accident medical records and personnel files. What can injured workers do ? If they have sustained an injury that will take a while to heal, then securing experienced legal counsel is a good step to take. A lawyer who regularly tries workers comp claims will be able to anticipate illegal “medical management’ by insurance company “nurses,” and can help navigate the complex process. If you or someone you know or care for has been injured as the result of an on the job accident or car, truck, bicycle or motorcycle crash at work, and there are questions about what laws apply, e-mail or call us at ABRAMS LANDAU, Ltd. (703-796-9555) at once.