Spinal Cord Injury From a Work Car or Truck Crash: Your Claim Options

A spinal cord injury from a crash on the job can upend your ability to work, move, and live independently. The good news is that Pennsylvania law often gives injured workers more than one way to recover. Understanding both is the difference between a settlement that runs out and one that actually covers a lifetime of care. A Pennsylvania spinal cord injury lawyer can map out every avenue for you.

Claim #1: Workers' Compensation

If your spinal cord injury happened while you were working — driving for deliveries, traveling between job sites, or otherwise in the course and scope of employment — workers' comp applies regardless of who caused the crash. It covers:

• All reasonable and necessary medical treatment for the spinal cord injury
• A portion of your lost wages while you cannot work
• Specific-loss benefits for permanent loss or loss of use in serious cases

What workers' comp does not pay is compensation for pain and suffering — and that is where the second claim matters.

Claim #2: A Third-Party Claim

If someone other than your employer caused the crash — another driver, a trucking company, a negligent contractor — you may bring a third-party personal injury claim. This is where the full value of a catastrophic spinal cord injury is usually recovered: pain and suffering, loss of earning capacity, and the future medical and attendant-care costs that a spinal cord injury demands over a lifetime. Learn how large those numbers get in our guide to the lifetime cost of a spinal cord injury.

How the Two Claims Work Together

The two claims run in parallel, and they interact — for example, the workers' comp insurer may have a right to be repaid (a subrogation lien) out of a third-party recovery. Handled well, the combination maximizes what reaches you. Handled poorly, money is left on the table. See how dual claims work for the full picture.

How Our Firm Handles It

Attorney Michael Cardamone is a Certified Workers' Compensation Specialist who handles your comp claim directly. When a third party is at fault, we coordinate with our heavyweight Personal Injury colleagues on that case so both claims are pursued together to maximize your total recovery. You should never have to guess which claim to file — that is our job.