I Failed to Report an Injury in Colorado. Am I in trouble?

If you were injured at work, Colorado law requires you to report your injuries in writing to your employer within 10 days of the injury. Missing this deadline can make it more difficult for you – or even prevent you – from collecting workers’ compensation benefits.

You can collect workers’ comp even if you were at fault, but you do have to show that the injury was work-related. The more time that passes between your accident and notifying your employer, the harder it may be to prove that you were injured at work.

Exceptions to the 10-Day Requirement

While timely reporting is important, you may still be able to recover workers’ comp benefits in certain cases. These include the following:

• If your employer has actual notice of the injury, you should not lose compensation for failing to report in writing. An example of “actual notice” is that your boss witnesses your accident.
• If you can show good cause for not reporting the injury in time, you may be able to get around the 10-day deadline. An example of good cause is that you were in the hospital.
  
• If your employer neglected to display the required notice about reporting work injuries, the time period for reporting may be tolled (paused).

Note that if work caused you to develop an occupational disease or injury, the reporting clock starts running from the moment you discovered – or should have known about – your condition. Occupational diseases and injuries often take months or even years to manifest (such as cancer, carpal tunnel or hearing loss).¹

What To Do If You Missed the 10-Day Deadline

If 10 days have passed since your work injury, you still may be able to get workers’ compensation benefits if you do all of the following:

1. Report your injury in writing to your employer as soon as possible.
2. If you have not already, get medical treatment for your injury to create a record of your condition.
3. Keep detailed records of your injury, including when and how it occurred, any witnesses, and all medical treatment you have received.
4. Consider speaking with a workers’ compensation attorney who can advise you on your rights and help you navigate the claims process.

If you are physically or mentally unable to provide written notice, ask your foreman, superintendent, manager, or any other person in charge who knows about your injury to submit it on your behalf.²

When Your Injury Involves a Car Accident

If you are in a car accident that causes an injury, you must report it to the Colorado DMV within 60 days unless police file the report themselves. Failure to file an accident report when necessary is a class 2 misdemeanor traffic offense, carrying:

• $150 to $300 in fines and/or
• 10 to 90 days in jail.³

Suing Your Employer

If you are an employee who gets injured at work, you usually do not have the option of suing your boss – even if they were at fault. In most work injury cases, your “exclusive remedy” is filing for workers’ compensation.

Circumstances where you may be able to sue your employer for a workplace injury include if your employer either:

1. intentionally caused your injury,
2. fraudulently concealed their connection to your injury,
3. acted in a dual capacity (as your employer and a third party), or
4. did not carry workers’ compensation insurance.

In a lawsuit, however, you would need to prove that the majority of the fault lies with the employer. In workers’ compensation cases, you can recover even if you were totally at fault.⁴

Standard Workers’ Compensation Benefits

Workers’ comp benefits are meant to help you recover physically and financially after a work-related injury or illness. These include:

• Medical bills: Common expenses are doctor visits, hospital stays, surgery, medications, physical therapy, and even specialized treatments like x-rays or MRIs. Under Colorado law, you are not required to pay deductibles or co-pays for this care.
• Temporary disability: If your injury prevents you from working temporarily, you can receive wage replacement benefits. These are typically two-thirds of your average weekly wage (up to the maximum, which is $1,324.21 a week).
• Permanent disability: If your injury results in lasting impairments, you may qualify for either Permanent Partial Disability (PPD) or Permanent Total Disability (PTD) benefits. PPD applies if you can still work but have some limitations, while PTD is for injuries that completely prevent you from working.
• Vocational rehabilitation. If your injury prevents you from returning to your previous job, vocational rehabilitation services can help you retrain for a new career.

If your family member died from the workplace injury, you may be able to receive financial support as well as funeral expenses.

Additional Resources

For more information, refer to these articles from the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment.

• Injured Workers – An overview of what you need to know following a work injury.
• File a Workers’ Compensation Claim – Instructions for what to do if you are injured at work.
• Workers’ Compensation Forms – Templates for forms you may need to complete, such as “change of physician.”
• Statute, Rules and Guidance – All the laws and rules regulating the workers’ comp system.
• Colorado Uninsured Employer Fund – Your options if your employer does not carry workers’ comp insurance.
• Division of Vocational Rehabilitation– Information on job retraining after a work injury.
  

---

Legal References