Ideally, you should report your workers’ compensation claim to your employer as soon as possible, in writing. This is called giving notice of your injury. It is a good idea to send notice by email, with a copy sent to yourself for your records.
By statute, you have 90 days from your date of injury or when you realized your injury was work related to report your claim to your employer. If you wait past the 90-day deadline, your claim may be denied.
Exceptions might include a repetitive stress injury, such as carpal tunnel syndrome, that worsens over time. Another exception might be for an occupational hazard, such as exposure to harmful chemicals. Sometimes these injuries take years to be diagnosed.
Once your employer receives notice or knows of your injury, they have four days to file a First Report of Injury (FROI) with the Iowa Workers’ Compensation Division.
Notice of a claim (reporting an injury) is different from the statute of limitations (filing a lawsuit). Talk to an attorney to make sure you are aware of important deadlines in your injury claim.
