Reporting Your Work Injury for Your DBA Claim

Posted on Monday April 27, 2020

Reporting a workplace injury may seem like an automatic occurrence if an accident and injury happen on the job. However, some workers might think an injury is too minor to report – that is, until it worsens, they experience complications, and they learn they need costly medical care. If you are working on an overseas contract and are covered by the Defense Base Act (DBA), it is important to remember that reporting injuries to your employer in a prompt manner can be essential to protecting your rights to benefits. 

How to Best Report Your Injuries

You might assume that your employer will automatically know about your injuries – after all, shouldn’t they know what happens involving their workforce? You would likely be surprised how many supervisors are not aware of injuries that occur to their staff members. You should proactively discuss your injuries with your employer.

If you need emergency treatment, your priority should be getting medical care, and then, you should report what happened as soon as your condition is stable. If it is not an emergency situation, consider taking the time to report the injury first to ensure it happens in a timely manner. 

You should include any accounts from eyewitnesses regarding what happened in your report, so you can corroborate your claim that the injury occurred on the job. You want to complete an incident report with your supervisor, which includes the LS-201 form, called the Notice of Employee’s Injury or Death. 

When your employer receives written notice of your work-related injuries, they are required to inform the United States Department of Labor by filing form LS-202 with the Longshore Division of the Office of Workers’ Compensation Programs. This form is referred to as the Employer’s First Report of Injury or Occupational Illness.

If for some reason, your employer fails to file the proper forms with the Department of Labor, the one-year time period limitation does not begin to run as it normally would. IN this situation, you will need to file your own form – LS-203, which is the Employee’s Claim for Compensation. 

You want to keep a copy of the incident report and forms filed for your own records. If you were injured at a remote job site, you should maintain any written communications or emails that you used to report your injuries. It is generally wise to use written communication in this situation, as you cannot so easily memorialize a phone call. 

Contact our Experienced DBA Attorneys Today

After sustaining a work-related injury on foreign soil, it can be difficult to know what steps to take to protect your rights to Defense Base Act benefits. However, these benefits are often critical if you need extensive medical treatment or you must miss work. You should never hesitate to seek advice from an experienced DBA attorney at the Mara Law Firm. We handle a wide variety of DBA claims for clients with all types of injuries. Call (619) 234-2833 or contact us online to discuss the best course of action today.