When will I get my next workers’ comp check?
In Mississippi, if your workers comp claim is admitted, and your approved doctor has taken you off work for 5 or more days under a doctor’s care, you are entitled to payment for your time off work. Commonly referred to as “workers’ comp checks”, this payment for your time off work is actually called temporary total disability— you may hear us refer to them as TTD for short. The amount can vary depending on how much you made per week and depending on the year you were injured. However, just because you have missed 5 days does not mean you should stand waiting by your mailbox for your check to arrive.
The real question is when you will get your check. If you are entitled to TTC in Mississippi, you should get a check no later than 14 days after the last missed day was paid. Sometimes they will pay you once a week. Sometimes they will pay you every 14 days. But paying every 14 days is risky for them because it increases the chance of being late on a day or two worth of payments. They could pay you daily if they wanted. But so long as you have been paid for all missed days with no longer than a 14 day gap, they are in compliance with the law.
Insurance companies will often switch the frequency of payments in the middle of your case. We don’t know why. Maybe an adjuster changes. Maybe hire policy changes. Maybe it has something to do with the way they view the case. The bottom line is we cannot make them pay more than every 14 days even if you have gotten used to a weekly schedule. But what we can do, when they are late is one of two things. We can ask nicely, which doesn’t often work with insurance companies. Or we can file a motion with the Judge on your case. After discussing your case with you initially, if it is in your best interests and if you agree, we are going to file the necessary paperwork to get a Judge assigned to your case quickly. This puts us in a much better spot when problems like late checks arise because we can file these motions and get them heard much quicker than you could otherwise.
It is important to remember that your checks are initially issued by the insurance company or your employer. If they are being sent directly to you, or direct deposited to your bank account, we do not have a way of knowing 1. What day of the week to expect your check or 2. That you are missing a check unless you communicate it to our office and include supporting documentation. Once you provide us that documentation, your legal team can put a plan in place to get to the bottom of the issue.
If you had an injury and are missing work, you should contact us immediately. You may be getting your check on time right now. But the problem is what happens when they cut you off. You want it to be solved quickly with a Judge already assigned or do you want to have to start a case from the beginning at that point? If you have been hurt at work, we will gladly consult with you for free and explain this process in even more detail. Call Chhabra & Gibbs, P.A. At 601-948-8005 for all of your Mississippi workers compensation law, longshoreman, Jones act, offshore injuries or other personal injuries today.
