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Pizza worker settles workers’ comp claim for $180,000

Custom pizza shops have proliferated in Connecticut and elsewhere over the last several decades. People who love the choice of cheeses and other toppings do not often realize that their culinary freedom depends on many behind-the-scenes workers. One of these workers recently settled a workers’ compensation claim for an injury to his foot and ankle for $180,000.

The claimant was employed by Domino’s National Commissary as a delivery man. He was delivering cheese to one of his employer’s restaurants when the hand truck he was using slipped from his grip and fell on his knee and ankle. The truck was loaded with 400 pounds of cheese, and the impact was severe. The worker fell on his back and suffered a torn meniscus and a fractured foot. According to his attorney, the worker required surgical repair to the torn meniscus and several injections in his left ankle to reduce pain and improve mobility. Further surgery may be required to replace his injured knee.

Negotiations with the employer’s insurance company were especially difficult because the insurer hired three doctors in an effort to minimize the severity of the injuries. All parties agreed, however, that the worker’s injuries were caused by his fall and were therefore work-related. In the end, the parties agreed to compromise just prior to commencement of the hearing, and the insurer agreed to pay the worker $185,000 for his claims.

Anyone who has suffered a work-related injury will want to file a claim for workers’ compensation benefits. This case shows how even a relatively dispute-free case can take months to resolve. The claims process is intended to be worker-friendly, the but the services of an experienced compensation attorney may often speed the process along and help in removing roadblocks used by the employer and its insurers.

Source: Connecticut Law Tribune, “Domino’s Deliveryman Who Had 400 Pounds of Cheese Fall on Him Gets $180,000,” Robert Storace, April 24, 2018

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