FedEx Drivers With Repetitive Stress Injuries

Chicago Attorneys for FedEx Drivers with Repetitive Stress Injuries

Operating a FedEx truck makes significant demands on a driver’s body. Among these is repetitive strain. Repetitive stress injuries are caused by repeated strain on and use of one part of your body, whether your hand, forearm, elbow, or shoulder. You could develop a repetitive stress injury from the repeated actions you take in connection with steering, braking, and accelerating, while driving for your job. If you are a FedEx driver who suffers repetitive stress injuries on the job, you should call the seasoned Chicago workers’ compensation lawyers of Katz, Friedman, Eisenstein, Johnson, Bareck & Bertuca to schedule a consultation. We have more than 60 years of experience.

Recovering Benefits for Repetitive Stress Injuries

As a Chicago FedEx driver with repetitive stress injuries, you may experience a range of symptoms:

• Pain
• Inflammation
• Tenderness
• Tingling
• Stiffness
• Throbbing
• Increased sensitivity to heat or cold.

While you may experience only minor symptoms at first, it’s wise to get them checked out as soon as possible, since they can become more intense and disabling. While doctors may initially ask you use NSAIDs and ice or compress the area that is affected, you may need more significant treatments. In some cases, steroid injections are required. Physical therapy may be prescribed. Often FedEx and its insurers are skeptical of claims involving more expensive treatment, such as surgery.

Why Did I Receive a Denial for a Repetitive Stress Injury Claim?

You may receive a denial of some or all of your claim for workers’ compensation benefits. These are issued for a range of reasons; for instance, your claim could be rejected if the insurer doesn’t believe the repetitive stress injury was caused by driving for FedEx, or because you have a preexisting condition You should not assume that these denials are valid, and you should consult a knowledgeable workers’ compensation lawyer about your unique circumstances.

What Medical Benefits Can You Get for a Repetitive Stress Injury?

You can get FedEx’s workers’ compensation insurer to pay for your reasonable and necessary medical care for a work injury. How serious your symptoms injury are will dictate what treatment you need and for what care your employer’s insurer will pay. In some cases, insurers do not take repetitive stress injuries seriously, or do not believe they are as serious as they are. You may be asked to go to an independent medical exam (IME) or there may be a utilization review of care you need.

At an IME, it is important to stay alert to the fact that the doctor who conducts this exam is not your doctor and doesn’t owe you any duty of care. The doctor will create a report based on your injuries, and that report can be used in an arbitration as evidence. If an insurer is skeptical of your claim, you may be surveilled even as you approach the doctor’s office. Even so, you must go to the IME or your workers’ compensation claim could be denied.

Can I get Vocational Rehabilitation Benefits as a FedEx Worker?

FedEx may be able to place you in a job that doesn’t adversely affect your recovery in connection with a repetitive stress injury. However, in some instances, FedEx drivers with repetitive stress injuries can’t return to their jobs as drivers and can also not be placed into a different position with FedEx because the injury is expected to present problems in the future in connection with the work. If you qualify for vocational rehabilitation, you may be able to get job counseling and training, as well as job replacement through workers’ compensation.

Your treating doctor must agree that you face permanent restrictions on your ability to work as a result of work-related repetitive stress injuries.

Consult a Seasoned Repetitive Stress Injury Lawyer

We handle FedEx drivers’ workers’ compensation claims involving repetitive stress injuries in Rockford, Aurora, Champaign, Quincy, as well as Winnebago, Kane, Sangamon, Cook, and Adams Counties. Our Chicago attorneys also represent clients in third party lawsuits and Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) claims. Call us at 312-724-5846 or complete our online form.