Virginia Workers Compensation Airport Fatality Claims Limited

Fatal accidents at Virginia airports or involving airline employees can result in workers comp benefits, but Herndon Dulles area fatality lawyer Doug Landau notes that these insurance payments are limited in amount and duration

Misconceptions about what benefits are available to the families of airport and airline employees after a fatal accident necessitate some of the most difficult conversations Dulles area attorney Doug Landau has at the Herndon law firm ABRAMS LANDAU, Ltd.. These are the most serious cases, yet the benefits, under Virginia workers comp law, are limited. Whether our client was killed in the construction of the Dulles International Airport expansion or in the air in the 9/11 disaster, the benefits for their grieving families are shockingly small. In fact, the do not even last 10 years.

Under the Virginia Code, section 65.2-512, compensation to dependents of an employee killed in an on the job, compensable accident includes: burial expenses and wage loss payments. These wage loss checks are for those wholly dependent upon the deceased employee. These deceased employee’s dependents can get up to 500 weeks of comp benefits from the date of injury at 2/3rds of their average weekly gross wages. These are usually spouses, children and parents in destitute circumstances. However, under Virginia law, the checks last only 400 weeks in other cases, such as for partial dependents. Less than 10 years of wage benefits seems like very little, especially in the case of a young airport or airline worker, one who might have contributed to the family’s income for 30 or 40 more years. Plus, there is “cap” or maximum comp rare, so some claimant’s families do not even get the “2/3rds average weekly wage”

A Virginia employer may also pay burial expenses not exceeding $10,000 and reasonable transportation expenses for the deceased not exceeding $1,000 in a compensable fatal accident claim. While the funeral and burial expense benefit may be a help to grieving families. But Herndon workers comp lawyer Landau has seen the letters sent by the insurance companies when they are done paying wage loss benefits. These letters tell the still-mourning families that the benefits are at an end. Even when the airport worker, airline pilot or flight attendant has been injured through no fault of their own, the benefits are finite. If you or someone you know or care for has had a fatal accident at an airport or in the employment of the airlines, and there are questions about how the workers compensation laws apply, e-mail or call us at ABRAMS LANDAU, Ltd. (703-796-9555) at once.